Prey
by CanonAntithesis
Summary: A campout turns disastrous when the gang is taken hostage by a crazed big game hunter. TroyPay, of course. Penname changed from GimmeABeat to CanonAntithesis
1. Community Service

**Prey**

Disclaimer:The Mouse owns High School Musical and the characters within. I'm just borrowing them for awhile. I promise I'll put them back when I'm finished.

Summary: A campout turns disastrous when the gang is taken hostage by a crazed big game hunter.

Pairing: TroyPay, of course.

Time frame: Autumn of their senior year, after the summer at Lava Springs.

**Chapter 1: Community Service**

"Oooo, listen to this one", Gabriella says with excitement as she reads aloud from a small paperback book. "How to Survive a Bear Attack. Now that could come in handy..."

Sharpay rolls her eyes at the overly enthusiastic brunette and then, turns her head towards the window and tries to figure out what the hell she's doing here. Gabriella is sitting next to Sharpay as they bounce along the rough terrain in the huge Hummer H2 SUV. Troy and Ryan graciously took the third row, but Ryan is barely in his seat as he is straining against his seatbelt in order to lean forward far enough to hear what Gabriella is reading. Troy is staring absentmindedly out the window. He's thinking back to how they came to be here today.

_It's the first week of school and Troy is flying high. This is almost as good as the summer. He's got his best bud, Chad and his best girl, Gabriella. Basketball will be starting in a couple of months and his dad has already started training his team with mandatory workouts in the weight room. And best of all, it's the first Friday of the school year and tonight he and Gabriella are double dating with Chad and Taylor. Life couldn't be better._

"_Hey, babe", Troy croons into Gabriella's neck as he sneaks up behind her. She twists her head in irritation and scoots away from him. _

"_Troy...", she admonishes, "I've ask you not to do that in public. It's embarrassing."_

"_Sorry", he replies sheepishly. "I just wanted to firm up our plans for tonight." _

_He's leaning against the locker next to Gabriella's while she sorts through all her books, deciding which one's she needs for the weekend._

"_Oh, I'm sorry, Troy. I thought I told you. I can't go out tonight. I have a tutoring session."_

"_Tutoring? You? What on earth do you need tutoring in?"_

"_Noooo, silly. I don't need tutoring. I am the tutor. My mom says it looks great on college applications."_

"_But we're talking about Friday night, Gabby --- the first Friday night of the school year."_

"_Exactly, ... so there'll be lots more before the year is over. We can go out Saturday night", she offers __with a peppy smile._

"_I can't. We're going to my grandma's on Saturday morning. She lives in Santa Fe and Saturday's her birthday", he finishes with a slight pout on his lips._

"_Aaaah, you're so cute when you pout, but we'll have lots of other Fridays. I promise", she reaches over and shyly strokes his cheek with her hand and then, pulls it back quickly before anyone can see. "Hey! Have you already completed your community service requirement for graduation? I know most people have already done it and I'm really behind the curve, but moving here mid-year last year really threw me off."_

"_Uuuuh, no. I ... uh ... kind of forgot about it. See ... back when I should have been concentrating on it, I was distracted by this really cute girl who just moved to town."_

"_Really?", she says self consciously. "I distracted you?"_

"_Every minute of every day", he says sincerely. He steps closer to her and reaches out to wrap his arm around her waist when she suddenly realizes what he's about to do and she steps back. _

"_Hey, stop that! Now, you're the one distracting me. We need to talk about community service", she insists and then, she starts frantically searching through her backpack for something. "Check this out", she says as she hands a pamphlet to him. _

_Troy barely glances at it --- clearly not in a mood to talk about community service. _

"_What do you think?", she chirps._

"_What is this?"_

"_Oh, it's a really worthwhile organization called City Kidz Camping. It's where at-risk inner city kids can come out to the country and go camping, hiking, canoing, etc. You know, stuff they wouldn't get to do otherwise. Doesn't that sound great?"_

"_I don't understand. What does it have to do with us?"_

"_Oh! We get to be the camp counselors. It'll look great on our college apps. Let's sign up, okay? We can do it together. Wouldn't that be fun?"_

"_I suppose", Troy says unenthusiastically._

"_The camp starts in the spring, for weekends only, of course. But there's training that we have to do and that starts in two weeks. It sounds pretty easy. There's basic first aid training and CPR, some group dynamics training, ... oh, but the first thing is the basic wilderness survival training", she says with a laugh. "But don't worry, it's not as bad as it sounds. It's really just camping for two days in tents and cooking on a campfire, that sort of stuff. I've never actually been camping myself, but I think it sounds like a lot of fun."_

_This perks his interest. "Camping in a tent for two nights with you?", Troy says wryly as his waggles his brows. _

"_No, silly. There will be no mixing of the genders. It says so right in the pamphlet." She pokes at the paper authoritatively when she tells him this._

"_Still,... it might have possibilities."_

"_So you'll do it?" At his nod, she jumps for joy. "Oh, this is going to be so much fun. We'll be camping with two guides and another couple in training like us. Wonder who the other couple will be? Wouldn't it be great if it's someone we know?"_

_At the same time in the guidance counselor's office, an irate Sharpay Evans is trying to restrain herself from choking Mrs. Saar. _

"_You listen to me, very carefully. I will not be a babysitter for a bunch of juvenile delinquent, drug addict, gang members. Are we clear on that?", Sharpay seethes at the overly calm looking middle-aged woman._

"_Now, Sharpay, may I take this opportunity to remind you that East High's character trait for this month is respect. Therefore, I think you should avail yourself of this most treasured characteristic and ..."_

"_Aaaaaaahh!", screams Sharpay in frustration. "Ryan! Explain things to her! Now, Ryan!"_

_Ryan, who had been until now, sitting quietly in the other chair in Mrs. Saar's small office, looks up suddenly with big wide eyes. He had obviously not been paying attention to the conversion happening between the two women._

"_Uhhh? Oh, right...", he says as he quickly decides that this would be a fine opportunity to practice his impromptu acting skills. "Well, you see, Mrs. Saar, Sharpay suffers from outdoor-a-phobia. She's always been that way. When she was little, mom had to put a bag on her head to get out of the house and into the car. She's better now, of course, but definitely, spending that much time in the forest, especially with children... Did I mention she also has kid-a-phobia too?"_

_Mrs. Saar is resting her head on hand with an unreadable expression on her face._

"_So you're saying ... Sharpay is suffering from agoraphobia and pedophobia? Because if that's the case, I have a friend who specializes in phobia cases and I could recommend that she..."_

"_Pedophilia?! Oh no! Of course not! Sharpay can't stand to be within ten feet of child. So you definitely don't have to worry about her doing anything ..."_

"_Ryan!!! Shut it! Now!" Sharpay has definitely heard all she can stand to hear. Then, turning to Mrs. Saar, she plasters on her very best fake smile --- the one she saves for all her adoring fans, and says, "Thank you so much, Mrs. Saar. Ryan and I would simply love to volunteer our time and immerse knowledge to aid any underprivileged youths who need our help."_

_With that, she turns to leave, but Mrs. Saar stops her. "Excellent decision, Sharpay. Now the first training will be the wilderness survival training in two weeks. You'll be paired with another couple in __training along with two wilderness experts for two nights of tent camping in the Arroya National Forest."_

"_We look forward to the experience", she says in a saccharine sweet voice and then, turning to Ryan, barks, "Ryan! Come!"_

_Once they are in the hallway, Sharpay grabs Ryan by the collar of his, ever present, dress shirt and shoves him against the nearest row of lockers._

"_You call that helping? It's pedophobia NOT, pedophilia! You dolt!"_

_She releases him and starts to stalk away. He rushes to catch up with her and says, "I was just trying out my improv. And anyway, if you'da just picked the animal shelter like I wanted last year, all the good services wouldn't have been filled up. Maybe it won't be so bad. Mrs. Saar said there'll be another couple there with us. Who knows ... maybe it'll be somebody we know."_

"... So in summary, if it's a grizzly, play dead. If it's a black bear, or a grizzly that regards you as prey, don't play dead. In that case, the best thing to do is fight back", Gabriella finishes with relish.

"Wow, that's amazing", Ryan comments, clearly enraptured with her speech. "But wait a minute; how do you tell if the grizzly thinks you're prey?"

"Ummmm", Gabriella says as she searches quickly through the book. "It doesn't say, but it does talk about the best way to hike. You want to hear about that?"

"Please, yes", Ryan says sincerely.

"Please, ... just shoot me and put me out of my misery", Sharpay grumbles.

Troy smirks a little from the backseat. However, no one notices the look that passes between the two "wilderness experts" sitting in the front of the vehicle.

TBC

So... what do you think? Please let me know.

Oh there's no such place as Arroya National Forest (at least I don't think so).

Thanks to Going2Alaska for coming up with the title of this story.


	2. Pitching Tents or Pitching Woe

**Prey**

Disclaimer:See chapter 1

**Chapter 2: Pitching Tents or Pitching Woe**

"Uggh", groans Gabriella as she slumps down onto a rock and pulls off her boots to massage her aching feet. "I don't understand why my feet hurt so much. I bought the boots that the outdoor store recommended."

Troy plops down next to her and takes a swig of water from his canteen. "Yeah, those are really nice looking boots", he comments. "When did you get them?"

"I bought them three days ago."

Sharpay, who until now, had been ignoring the two couldn't help but speak up. "Three days ago? Are you insane? You can't go hiking in new boots. Besides, those things are way too big and heavy."

"She's right there, miss", provides Jake, the male trail guide. "The rule of thumb is _new socks, old shoes_." Jake, himself, is wearing jeans, a flannel red shirt and well-broken in hiking boots.

Troy happens to be looking at Sharpay while Jake is giving Gabby his advice and he's shocked when he sees her mouth the words, "New socks, old shoes", in time with Jake. He looks down to see what she's wearing and is equally shocked to see that Sharpay is wearing beat up old trainers.

"Well, at least she's wearing boots", Troy says. He feels an uncomfortable need to defend his girlfriend. "You're just wearing old sneakers."

"Old sneakers?!", she shoots back at him. "I'll have you know, Bolton, that these are North Face trail running shoes and my footwear is properly broken in! And if Nerdiella, there, would get her nose out of a book and get some practical experience, she'd be a lot better off."

With that Sharpay storms over to where Ryan is sitting and snatches his water bottle out of his hand. She squirts a stream of water into her own mouth, swishes it around and then, spits it out onto the ground, narrowly missing her brother's foot.

"Hey! Don't take it out on me. I wore the proper footwear."

"God, Ryan! It's bad enough we have to be here at all... But to be here with _them_."

"I thought you liked him", Ryan says mockingly.

"Things have ... changed since the summer." Yet... Sharpay finds herself unconsciously glancing back over at the brunette couple and feels ... a certain longing ... until Troy's eye catches her and she quickly looks away.

"Alright, campers!", Eve, the female guide, announces as she comes to stand in the middle of the clearing. She is a tall, willowy woman and looks like she's swimming in the green flannel shirt and blue jeans she's wearing. "We have about two more hours of hiking until we reach the campsite, so let's get moving. We need to have time to set up the tents before nightfall." She takes a final bite on her Snickers bar and drops the wrapper on the ground before walking over to Jake who's taking a final drawl on his cigarette. He casually grinds the butt into the ground before reaching down to retrieve his backpack.

"Something's up with those two", Sharpay observes in a low whisper.

"Whadaya mean?", Ryan asks while he pulls on his own gear.

"Well, Morticia and Gomez, there, don't look like your typical outdoorsey types is what I mean. She's paler than _you_ and he's got a three-pack-a-day cigarette habit that doesn't mix well with the great outdoors."

Ryan mumbles, "I'm not that pale", while reaching down and pocketing Eve's disguarded candy wrapper.

"And that...", she points out his action. "What kind of wilderness expert litters?"

"I don't know ... a careless one? Maybe they weren't raised by such a flaming tree-hugger, like we were."

"And another thing ... we're going the wrong way. Why are they taking us up this way? We'd have been there by now if we'd stuck to the main trail."

"I thought we weren't going to tell anyone we'd been here before."

"I'm not ... I'm just wondering why we're taking such a roundabout way of getting there is all."

"Maybe it's part of the training ... you know ... try to tire us out more or something."

"Maybe...", Sharpay murmurs as they take up their positions at the end of the group.

After arriving at the campsite, Jake and Eve leave the teenagers alone to pitch their own tents, stating that this is OJT or On-the-Job-Training. The two guides disappear into the forest and tell them that they will return in one hour to inspect their shelters.

"I bet they're hiding out in an RV parked on the other side of that ravine", comments Sharpay.

"Do you always have to be so negative?", snaps Gabriella. Normally, she would have never made such an argumentative statement, but she's tired and hungry and her feet hurt.

"Whoa, when did you grow a spine?"

"Will you just quit it? Please?", Gabriella pleads. "I really want to learn and enjoy this experience and you're just ruining it."

"_I'm_ ruining it?", Sharpay asks in disbelief. "I didn't just desert us in the middle of the wilderness in order to test us, you know? That wasn't me; that was our, so-called, instructors."

"I think it's an excellent idea. But I could understand someone like you not liking that. You're used to having everything handed to you on a silver platter and now that you have to actually work for something ..."

"We'll see who's used to working...", Sharpay cuts her off. "How about a little contest? Ryan and me against you and Bolton. We'll see who can get their tent put together first."

"Well ... okay ... I guess", Gabriella says, a little nervously.

Ten minutes later, Sharpay and Ryan are lying back against a tree watching Troy and Gabriella argue over which pole goes where. The Evans twins pitched their tent perfectly, like a precision drill team.

"Think we should help them?", Ryan asks with concern.

"Hell, no. Let them sleep out in the cold, if it comes down to it."

"Uh, Sharpay... Remember that _no mixing of the genders_ rule?"

"So?", Sharpay asks with knitted brows.

"Well, there's only two tents, so that means one tent is for the girls and the other one is for the boys..."

Sharpay's eyes narrow as she studies the other two "trainees" and she wonders how Ryan suddenly became so smart.

"Dibs on our tent!", she shouts as she jumps up and makes a run for the only completed tent.

Ryan is right behind her and decides to make a daring move by jumping into the air and sliding head first towards the tent --- just like sliding into home plate. His new found love of baseball will definitely serve him well. Everything starts out perfectly; Ryan leaps into the air and goes sailing past Sharpay. Unfortunately, sliding on a flat, level baseball field is very different from sliding in a clearing in the middle of the forest. And when he comes back down to earth to commence the actual sliding part of the slide, his ankle snags on a large, half-buried tree root, partially hidden by some pine needles.

"Owww!", screams Ryan as his body comes to an abrupt stop.

Sharpay, meanwhile, is doing her victory dance in front of the tent.

Gabriella, upon seeing Ryan's distress, drops her tent pole and runs over to help him.

Troy is still standing there with a puzzled look on his face as he compares the mess on the ground at his feet with the tent that Ryan and Sharpay built.

"Oh Ryan, quit being such a baby", Sharpay admonishes her brother as she moves to stand next to him. "Just because I won..."

"It really hurts, Shar", Ryan whines as he gently cradles his ankle in hopes of finding some relief.

She seems to be studying him for a moment as she tries to come to a decision. Then, she drops to the ground next to him and responds sincerely, "Oh Ry, you're not joking, are you? It's really bad."

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure I sprained it."

"Okay! Nobody panic! I had first aid training. RICE!", Gabriella shouts.

"Umm, I'm not really very hungry right now", Ryan says through gritted teeth.

"RICE", she repeats, "Rest!", she puts her hand on Ryan's chest and pushes him down to the ground. "Ice! Well, we don't have any of that", and then, to Ryan whispers, "Sorry. ... Compression!" She takes a bandanna out of her pocket and ties it around his ankle. "And finally, Elevation." She takes one of the sleeping bags and gently lifts his leg and puts it under his injured ankle.

All this attention from Gabriella happened so fast, Ryan is stunned into silence and momentarily has forgotten how much his ankle hurts. He especially liked how it felt when she had her hand on his chest.

"Umm, thanks, Gabriella", Ryan says shyly.

"No problem", she mutters before turning away.

"I think we need to take you back and get you to a doctor", Troy states. He's finally given up on the tent project and joined the other three.

"Oh, I definitely agree", Sharpay says. "I'm sorry you had to get hurt, Ry, but if it'll get us out of this camping crap, then good going!" Then, she looks up from her kneeling position next to Ryan and says sincerely, "Umm, thanks Gabriella ... for ... taking charge and taking care of Ryan. I really appreciate it."

Gabriella nods silently.

"So now, we just have to wait until the guides come back", Troy says. "They should be back soon; I think our time's almost up."

Before anyone can respond, a loud clicking noise comes from behind them and everyone turns to see three people standing there with the large man in the middle casually aiming a rifle right at them.

"That's where you got it wrong, boy", a deep male voice drawls out in a slow southern accent. "Your time is jest beginnin'."

** Insert dramatic cliffhanger music here**

TBC

Thanks for all the reviews; I really appreciate it.

The reference to Morticia and Gomez --- That Mr & Mrs Addams from The Addams Family.

Please let me know what you think.


	3. The Challenge

**Prey**

Disclaimer:See chapter 1

_Previously in Prey..._

"_So now, we just have to wait until the guides come back", Troy says. "They should be back soon; I think our time's almost up."_

_Before anyone can respond, a loud clicking noise comes from behind them and everyone turns to see three people standing there with the large man in the middle casually aiming a rifle right at them._

"_That's where you got it wrong, boy", a deep male voice drawls out in a slow southern accent. "Your time is jest beginnin'."_

**Chapter 3: The Challenge**

Troy looks over at the one who spoke and sees a middle-aged man with shortly cropped, salt and pepper hair. He is tall, easily over six feet, but his large frame and barrel chest make him seem even larger. He's wearing camouflage hunting clothes, an oiled leather Akubrahat with a band of, what looks like, crocodile teeth on his head and flamboyant light tan boots on his feet. The boots have pebbled bumps on them indicative of ostrich skin. The Hunter is standing casually holding a bolt-action rifle equipped with a scope. However, the intense gaze in his eyes makes Troy think that his casual stance is just an act made to give them a false sense of security. Troy isn't feeling very secure at all right now.

"Wow, that's a Weatherby Mark V", remarks Ryan from his position on the ground. He's referring to the rifle that the older man is holding.

"Shhh", hisses Sharpay sharply to her brother.

"What's that, boy?", The Hunter says as his eyes narrow on Ryan.

Sharpay speaks up. "He said you look like Crocodile Dundee."

The younger man standing on The Hunter's right steps forward.

"Watch your mouth little girl. Might be dangerous to your health", he says a heavy cocky accent. He is a short, platinum haired man, wearing a long black leather duster, black jeans, red t-shirt and black, steel-toed Doc Marten boots.

Sharpay raises her eyebrows while she tries to place him. Gabriella beats her to it.

"Jake? Is that you?", she asks in bewilderment.

"Right on the first try, luv."

"I knew she was the smart one, Jakey", the woman on the other side of The Hunter pops up. She is also speaking in an English accent. "Miss Edith told me so."

Sharpay does a double-take when she looks at the woman. She is pencil-thin and has long flowing black hair which, draped next to her skin further accents the paleness of her face. She is wearing a dark purple, vintage-looking calf-length dress with a high, tight bodice. On her feet are black knee length Manolo Blahnik designer boots.

"Do they look familiar to you, Ry?", Sharpay whispers.

"Of course they do, Sharpay", Gabriella says pompously. "That's Jake and Eve. They've just changed clothes."

"I know _that_", Sharpay snaps back. "It's something else. They remind me of someone else."

"Excuse me!", commands The Hunter. "So sorry for interrupting you two, but we've got some business to discuss."

"Of course, you do", Sharpay says calmly. "We've been through this before. Right, Ryan?" At Ryan's nod, she continues. "And it's not a problem because we're fully insured. Just tell Daddy how much you want and he'll deliver, no questions asked."

"What are you talking about?"

"The ransom money, of course. Now the last guys who took Ryan didn't feed him for two days and let me tell you when Daddy's men finally found them, they were none too nice. So I suggest that you treat us well. And _puleeze_ ... no blindfolds. They reek havoc with my hair."

Troy implores to her anxiously, "Please, Sharpay. Don't do anything to get herself hurt."

"I didn't know you cared."

Troy is about to reply when their attention is drawn back to the big man with the rifle.

The Hunter leans over to Jake and says, "Is this the best you could find? She's nuttier than your girlfriend."

"I knew she'd say that. The pixies in my head whispered it to me", Eve volunteers to no one in particular in an eerie, sing-song voice.

The Hunter just rolls his eyes, but instantly regains his composure and continues talking to the teenagers.

"I'm not kidnapping you, young lady. It's something much more interesting than that. You see, I'm a big game hunter. I've hunted all over the world ... from the jungles of South America to the grasslands of Africa and it's become ... boring. I need a challenge ... something ... or someone who can match wits with me.

"Jake and Eve, here, of course, that's not their real names. They were supposed to find two challenging individuals to alleviate my boredom. Unfortunately, those two people were your real wilderness experts and my over-anxious henchmen, here, killed them by mistake." Gabriella and Ryan let out an involuntary gasps. Jake and Eve look embarrassed at their faux pas.

"I hope it doesn't insult you too much to find out that you're second string." Troy flinches when he hears that. "But here's my proposition ... I will hunt ... two of you. To make it a little more interesting, Jake and Eve will stay here and guard the other two. The two runners will be given a destination, _a base_, if you will. So it's like a game. If you make it to base in 24 hours, the other two will be released and you all go home. If not, Jake and Eve will kill them. If I kill the two runners, Jake and Even will also kill the other two."

The four teenagers stare back at him in astonishment. Gabriella starts to visibly shake and Troy gathers her into his arms to comfort her.

"Now", The Hunter continues. "How do we decide who runs and who stays?"

"Well, Ryan sprained his ankle, so I think you should pick those two", Sharpay says, pointing to Troy and Gabriella.

"Hey! Great way to stick together", Troy exclaims sarcastically. "Besides, Gabriella can barely walk herself. She has blisters all over her feet."

"Then it's decided. It'll be Blondie and Pretty-Boy, there", The Hunter says, looking first to Sharpay and then, to Troy. Sharpay's eyes narrow to tiny slits. Troy's eyes grow wide. Gabriella trembles even more. And Ryan looks insulted that he wasn't the one called Pretty-Boy.

"I'm not an unreasonable man. I'll give you water and food, plus a map, of course, which will lead you to base. We'll need to take your cellphones, of course, and any weapons you have. Jake..."

Jake and Eve move quickly over to the teenagers and start roughly searching them and their backpacks for the contraband items while The Hunter keeps an eye and a trigger aimed steadily on them.

Jake lets out a low whistle when he pulls Ryan's cellphone out of his bag. "I've hit the motherload here, Eve. It's an iPhone ... always wanted one of these."

"She's got one too", Eve coos when she finds Sharpay's bright pink, jewel-encrusted iPhone. She hands the phone over to Jake.

"Hey, boss. These things have a better signal strength than ours do. This is just ... neat!"

"Great, just what every hoodlum and evildoer needs: a bright pink telephone", The Hunter drolls.

"Hey! Give that back! You ... you, Darbus wannabe!", shouts Sharpay.

"Look, pet. I don't know what a Darbus is, but you'd better watch that mouth before I do something you'll regret", Jake says in a low, menacing voice.

"You don't scare me, Jakey. And you do know you're wearing a woman's coat, right?" At his confused look, she adds, "The buttons are on the left side, genius."

"Well, I found it on the clearance rack."

Sharpay wrinkles her nose in disgust --- buying something on clearance is much worse than cross-dressing. Then, her eyes suddenly light up.

"I know who you remind me of", Sharpay says triumphantly. "You look like Spike and Drusilla ..."

"Yeah...", Troy agrees, nodding in agreement. "...from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I loved that show."

"Me, too", Sharpay says, nodding to Troy with a genuine smile on her face.

"Hey, that Spike guy stole my look", Jake explains indignantly.

Troy and Sharpay look skeptical.

Gabriella whispers to Troy. "I can't believe you liked that vampire show. It was gross."

"Yeah", agrees Ryan. "Sharpay's always liked that blood and guts stuff. I just think it's nasty."

"Alright, people. I want to kill someone, so either we get this show on the road or I'm jest gonna start firin'."

Jake hands The Hunter a cellphone and keeps one for himself. Then, he and Jake give Troy and Sharpay water bottles, some trail bars and a map with 'base' clearly marked on it.

"Your destination is a large rock formation called Table Rock. It's about 15 miles from here. It's 3:00 p.m. now, so you have until 3:00 p.m. tomorrow to get there. Best of luck to you and may the best man win --- who is, of course, ... me."

Troy and Sharpay are still standing there staring at him, not moving.

"Well, what are you waiting for? I'll give you a one hour head start ... so git!"

Sharpay turns anxiously to Ryan who is lying propped up against a tree with his leg still elevated with a sleeping bag.

"I'll be back, Ryan. We'll make it and everything will be fine", she chokes out as she grabs his hand tightly. "You're my baby brother and I'm not going to let you down."

"Only by three minutes, Shar."

"It still counts", she says quickly and with a small smile.

Troy walks over and starts to pull Gabriella into a hug when The Hunter's sharp voice stops him.

"Do you want to me to kill them now? I said git!"

Troy reluctantly steps back and nods solemnly to Sharpay and they take off together up the trail and further into the forest.

"It's already after four", Troy says. "If we're going to make it we're going to have to move fast." He's studying the map as he walks at a quick clip.

"You're right", Sharpay agrees as she widens her steps to keep up.

"Can you keep up?"

"Of course I can, Bolton. Question is ... can you?" Before waiting for an answer, she takes off at a steady jog and Troy moves quickly to run beside her.

An hour later, they take a well deserved break and Troy reaches into the small backpack to retrieve his water bottle. He opens the bottle with a shaky, sweaty hand and lifts it to his mouth.

"No!", Sharpay shrieks and quickly swats the bottle out of his hand. The bottle crashes to the ground and water starts to slowly leak out into the dirt.

"What the hell did you do that for?", Troy shouts angrily.

Sharpay takes a calming breath and says slowly, "It's too dangerous to drink that."

"What are you talking about?"

"It's not a sealed bottle, so you can't be sure it wasn't tampered with." He looks at her quizzically. "I'm a girl. We notice things like that. I never drink anything that I didn't pour myself or open brand new."

Understanding finally dawns on him and he starts to laugh at her. "You're kidding me. You actually think they'd try to slip us _roofies_?"

"Can you be sure they wouldn't?"

He thinks about it a minute and has to concede her point.

"Then, what do we drink?"

"The water in the streams around here is safe to drink. We can wash out the bottles and refill them when we find a stream."

Troy looks at her thoughtfully and then finally asks the question he's been wanting to ask the whole time. "How do you know all this stuff anyway? Were you in some play that dealt with survival? Or were you a girl scout or something?"

"That's a long story..."

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

"Well, their hour's almost up. Guess I should go put them out of their misery", The Hunter says slowly as he rechecks his ammunition and supplies.

"No need to hurry, boss", Jake tells him. He has just finished handcuffing Gabriella's left hand to Ryan's right hand and then Ryan's left hand to a tent spike and since Ryan can't walk, he's reasonably sure that they won't run off.

"What are you talking about, Jake?"

"Let's just say I tilted the odds in your direction a little. Added a litel som'hin' ta their water."

"You what?!", The Hunter booms angrily.

Nervously, Jake explains, "I added roofies to their water bottles, sir. So's they wouldn't give you too much trouble, ya' know."

"You stupid idiot. If you've ruined my fun, I'll be hunting you soon ... boy."

Then, he turns and stalks out of the camp in the direction of Troy and Sharpay.

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

They find a stream not five minutes walk from where they had stopped. It was easy to spot, according to Sharpay, because of the lush vegetation that was sprouting up near by. The young, abundant growth is a sure indication of a nearby water source.

"It's all my mother's fault, actually. She's this rapid, tree-hugging, Vegan who insists that we come with her every summer for two weeks of primitive camping so we can commune with nature, meditate through tenon snapping yoga exercises and in the process, lose ten pounds. But the weight lose isn't on purpose, it's because the food she forces us to eat is so nasty we can barely stomach it. She's been bringing Ryan and me here for as long as we can remember", Sharpay finally explains when she has her bottle sufficiently rinsed out and refilled with fresh spring water.

"Wow, you'd never guess that by looking at you." Troy's lying back on the softy mossy ground after having sated his thirst.

"I may know _how_ to survive out here, but that doesn't mean I _like_ it."

"Well, we'll probably never know if that water was spiked or not, but I think it's a good idea to be on the safe side. And we probably shouldn't eat the energy bars either."

"I agree", she says reluctantly, "but I'm already starting to get hungry."

"Let's not think about that now. And we'd better get going; he's probably already started hunting us."

"You're right and we're taking a chance by staying on the trail, but we'll make much better time here, rather than in the woods, so it's a calculated risk."

Troy stands up slowly and stretches.

"Let's stay on the trail until it starts to get dark, then we'll move off the trail. We've only got about one more hour 'til we lose the light", Troy suggests.

He casually reaches down and offers his hand to Sharpay. She takes it and pops up more quickly than she realizes and finds herself much closer to Troy Bolton than she intended.

"Good idea", she whispers breathlessly.

He inhales sharply and takes in the sweet smell of ... "What kind of perfume are you wearing? It's nice --- much better than what you used in the summer."

"I'm not wearing any", she replies in a barely audible whisper. "It's not good to come in the forest with perfume on. It attracts all sorts of unwanted ... interest." She's standing so close to him that she can feel his heart pounding in his chest.

Troy shakes his head to clear it and steps back suddenly. "Sorry", he mumbles, "I didn't mean..."

"Oh, you didn't ...", she mumbles back. "I mean ... we'd better get moving again."

"Yeah, you're right."

They get back on the trail at their steady jog, but this time they're unconsciously running closer to each other.

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

The Hunter reaches sees where his prey's trail veers off the trail and follows it to a small stream a few minutes away. The grass is dented down and he surmises that they must have taken a break here.

"Good; hopefully, they didn't drink any of the drugged water", he says to himself. "Maybe they're smarter than I thought." A small smile crosses his face.

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

"The Big Bad is back!", shouts Jake as he tosses two bags towards Ryan and Gabriella.

They look suspiciously at the McDonald's bags lying on the ground next to them.

"Oh, come on. What do you take me for?"

"Oh, you know", Gabriella says with more courage than she has. "A kidnapper, a killer, an evil minion? You pick? We heard you tell your boss about the drugs in the water."

"For the luv of...", Jake starts and then, he stomps over to the two teenagers causing Ryan to lift himself up and try to shield Gabriella. However, Jake just grabs one of the bags, removes the burger and tries a big bite. "See? It's perfectly safe. Not all that good, mind you? But perfectly safe. Personally, I'd prefer some good ole bangers and mash. Itin that right, Eve?"

"Mmmm, love those bangers, Jakey", Eve coos seductively, making him think she's not actually talking about sausages.

"Right. You two eat or not. I don't really care, but Eve and me got some business to take care of, right luv?"

Jake and Eve disappear into the woods, making them believe that Sharpay was probably right about that hidden RV, after all. Gabriella reaches forward and is just able to grab the two bags. She passes one to Ryan and opens her own, wrinkling her nose at having to eat a burger that that disgusting man bit.

"I'll take that one", offers Ryan. "I don't mind, really."

She smiles at him a little. "It's okay. You're already injured. That would be like double-dipping on the martyr list."

They eat in silence for a while before Ryan sighs suddenly and says what they're both thinking. "I wonder what's happening out there. I wonder if they're still...", but he can't bring himself to voice the words, so he falls silent again.

Gabriella reaches over to hold his hand and says quietly, "Me, too."

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

The sun is starting to drop in the west when Troy and Sharpay stop to take another break. The trail is so narrow at this point, that there's no where to rest in the thick forest on either side. Therefore, they're forced to just lie down flat on their backs on the rough trail itself. They take long drags on their water bottles and fall silent --- their own deep breaths, as they try to slow their racing hearts, is the only sound. Until Troy breaks that blessed silence...

"God! I'm so hungry. I'd give my left nut for a double cheeseburger", he exclaims passionately.

Sharpay, to her credit, doesn't blink an eye. Instead, she boosts herself up on her elbow and she says in a matter-of-fact manner, "Why? What's wrong with it?"

"What's wrong with what?"

"Your left nut. I mean why are guys always willing to sacrifice their _left _nuts. Is it not as good as the right one? Do you not like it as much?", she asks seriously.

"What! There's nothing wrong with either one of them and I value both of them, immensely. Believe me." He unconsciously reaches down and cups his hands over himself in a protective gesture.

"Oh, I do", she replies wryly.

"I can't believe we're having this discussion."

"Neither do I", says a deep voice.

Troy and Sharpay immediately jump to their feet when see The Hunter standing only 15 feet from them. They're so stunned that their feet are rooted to the ground and they can't move. The Hunter slowly raises his rifle and takes aim at Sharpay. Troy bravely steps in front of her and stands trembling before the crazed man.

The Hunter, seeing that they aren't going to run, decides to take things slow and do it right. He takes a deep breath and lets it out; he takes a second breath and lets out half of it and holds the rest. He knows that deep breathing will provide his blood with oxygen which will help steady his hand, clear his vision and calm his nerves. Holding the last breath will keep his aim steady since his chest is not moving.

Next, is the hardest part. He will have to do his best to relax and not let himself get caught up in the excitement. He needs to focus on calming himself and relaxing so his sights don't dance around as much.

He lifts the scope to his eyes and makes sure his vision through the scope is clear and bright with no half-moon shadows on the left, right, top, or bottom. A common mistake at this stage is to grip the rifle too tightly. He takes up the slack in his trigger pull. Once he has taken the slack out of the trigger pull, he's ready to fire.

Now it's time to squeeze the trigger. He knows he must avoid flinching. Flinching will cause him to jerk the rifle and he'll miss.

Sharpay, realizing that there's nowhere for them to run, wraps her arms around Troy from behind and buries her head in his back. Troy, as brave as he is, squeezes his eyes shut and waits. Then, The Hunter squeezes the trigger and ... nothing happens. The rifle misfires.

"Dud", grumbles The Hunter.

Troy slowly peeks one eye open and sees The Hunter staring at his rifle in disbelief. Then, he snarls and pulls a pistol out of the belt. Troy realizes they've been given a second chance. He quickly turns around, grabs Sharpay's hand and blasts off up the trail.

The trail slopes steeply up for about a hundred more yards where it reaches the top of a hill. Over their own ragged breaths and pounding hearts, they can hear The Hunter cursing behind them and a shot ricochets off a nearby branch.

They reach the crest of the hill and stop short. They're both staring down in disbelief at a raging river 25 feet below.

"Oh God, where's the bridge?", Sharpay shouts anxiously. "There's supposed to be a bridge!"

Troy turns to look back toward their pursuer. He gaining on them. Troy looks left and right at the dense underbrush of the forest and realizes there's no where else to go. This is it. Looking to Sharpay, he does the only thing he can think to do.

"Sharpay? Can you swim?"

However, before waiting for an answer he shoves her as hard as he can off the cliff. He jumps seconds later and they both plunge down towards the angry, churning water below.

Insert evil cliff (literally) hanger music here

TBC

I'm in full research mode in this chapter. My cute, sexy nerd who won't read my stories (remember him?), anyway, he told me what kind of weapons to use and I was trying (not very successively) to rhyme Weatherby with Crocodile Dundee. Oh and Weatherby rifles cost over $2,000.

I did the clothing descriptions from Sharpay's POV because I figure she's the only one who'd know the brand names of the boots.

I'm a huge Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan and Spike just melts my insides. Therefore, I couldn't help but dress the bad guys like Spike and Drusilla. BTW, Spike really did wear a woman's coat. He got his gorgeous leather duster from the slayer he killed in the 1970's. They showed that in a flashback. Also, he really did say, "This is just ... neat!" and he was often referred to as The Big Bad.

And Drusilla was a wacked out nut job who had a doll named Miss Edith who told her the future.


	4. Surviving the River and Each Other

**Prey**

Disclaimer:See chapter 1

_Previously in Prey..._

_Troy turns to look back toward their pursuer. He gaining on them. Troy looks left and right at the dense underbrush of the forest and realizes there's no where else to go. This is it. Looking to Sharpay, he does the only thing he can think to do._

"_Sharpay? Can you swim?"_

_However, before waiting for an answer he shoves her as hard as he can off the cliff. He jumps seconds later and they both plunge down towards the angry, churning water below._

**Chapter 4: Surviving the River and Each Other**

The Hunter is standing at the top of the cliff cursing the bad luck that caused his rifle to misfire. Even with the aid of his binoculars, there's no sign of them. _Damn, they're probably dead. And where's the fun in that if I wasn't the one who killed them._

Nevertheless, he's no quitter. Therefore, he studies the current and direction the river is flowing and then, references that with his map to determine the best location to continue his hunt. With a determined stride, he turns back down the trail.

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

Far from the view of The Hunter, Troy breaks through the surface of the rushing water, gasping for air.

"Sharpay!", he shouts, but receives no reply. He looks around, franticly trying to find her --- twirling around in the frigid water until he's dizzy, but there's still no sign of her.

Troy's being swept downstream and it's all he can do to keep his head above water. Suddenly, he sees a low branch hanging out over the river and he leaps up with all his might to grab it. It's just like making a slam dunk in a basketball game, except winning this game is way more important than any he's ever played before. He makes it and the branch bows down under his weight, but it doesn't break. Moving both hands slowly along the branch, he works his way up towards the shore. The water is cold and its weight soaks deeply into his clothes and shoes, making him feel like he's carrying an extra 50 pounds. Finally, he manages to reach the shore and heaves himself up onto a small sandbar.

Five minutes later, he's still lying on his stomach and the side of his face is pressed down into the gritty, wet sand, but he's too tired to move.

_I'm alive_, he thinks in exhaustion. And then immediately on the tail of that thought comes, _but where's Sharpay?_

Troy wearily lifts his head and tries to scan the river for any sign of her. Sharpay ... she's turned out to be one surprise after another and not unpleasant ones. Although he'd never admit it aloud, he's actually glad that she's the one with him and not Gabriella. He doesn't think Gabriella could have held up to the rigors of running the distances they had covered today. In fact, he's surprised that Sharpay did so well. It seems that there's a lot about her he doesn't know. _I hope I get a chance to find out more. I hope..._

Before he can finish that thought, Troy feels a sharp pain in the small of his back --- a kidney punch and another in the middle of his back ... and another and another, reigning down on his back in rapid succession.

_Oh God, The Hunter found me!_, he thinks in a panic. He rolls over on his back to defend himself when his assailant spews out a huge stream of profanity that would have shocked a gang member. It's then that he realizes this voice is way too high and rapid to be the slow, deep southern drawl of The Hunter.

"You stupid, conceited, asinine, son of a bitch ... Are you crazy? Of course, you are. What in the hell did you think you were doing pushing me and then, jumping off that cliff? You could have killed yourself. More importantly, you could have killed _me_!" Sharpay continues to pound her fists into him as she screams out her frustrations.

"Sharpay! Please! Stop hitting me!", Troy pleads as he finally manages to grab her wrists and hold them away from his body.

Now he can get a good look at the petite little blond who is currently straddling him with a wild look in her eye. This is definitely a place Troy Bolton never wanted to find himself --- on the other end of Sharpay Evans' fury. However, looking up at her, his imminent demise is the last thing on his mind. She is as wet as he is and her hair is a gnarly, tangled mess that is hanging limply over her face, obscuring the left half completely. She must have landed on the sandbar too because she has wet sand sticking to her dripping clothes.

Troy carefully takes one of her wrists and moves it over to his other hand so he can hold both of her wrists with one hand. Then, he reaches up and moves the hair out of her eyes. She has never looked more beautiful to him. _Did I just think that?_

He sits up suddenly and envelopes her in a bone crushing hug. "God, Sharpay! You're alive! I was so worried when I couldn't find you. Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

Sharpay is stunned. She was so angry when he pushed her into the river. Although now, she realizes that she was able to channel that anger into helping her survive the situation. She was so intent on getting out of the water and exacting her revenge on that jerk that she didn't have time to panic about nearly drowning. But now ... he's hugging her like she's his long lost ... What?

When Troy sat up and hugged her, her legs automatically wrapped around his waist and now she's, for all intents and purposes, sitting on Troy's lap. She wraps her arms around his neck to maintain her balance, at least that's what she tells herself, at first. Now, this god of boy who she's been crushing on since freshman year is actually hugging her. And shock of shocks, she starts hugging him back.

Finally, he slowly pulls back to look at her.

"I was so scared", he chokes out in a whisper.

Sharpay is stunned when she sees his face. A lone tear is trailing slowly down his cheek.

"Hey... It's okay. We're okay. We're both alive, despite that stupid stunt you pulled and we're going to make it out of this."

Then, she reaches up and gently wipes away the tear. He takes her hand in his and turns it over and places a light kiss on her palm. Next, Troy gets a distasteful look on his face as he seems to be chewing on something. He leans over to the side and spits onto the ground.

"Well, that's just nasty", Sharpay comments.

"Blah", he says as he sticks his tongue out of his mouth. "Sand."

Sharpay surprises herself again when she also leans over and hocks a loogie, trying to get the gritty feel of the sand out of her own mouth. Then, they both look back at each other and the absurdity of the situation and they both start to laugh. They're being hunted by a homicidal lunatic and now they're fretting over the taste of sand in their mouths. Who can't find the humor in that?

"It's probably not safe to stay here. It's going to be dark soon", Troy finally says after they've laughed themselves out. "Do you have any idea where we are?"

They also manage to check themselves out and amazingly both of them only have a few minor scrapes and bruises, despite the damage that Sharpay tried to deliver on Troy.

"Not a clue", Sharpay says as she stands up. She makes an unconscious shiver and wraps her arms around herself to ward off the chill.

Troy walks up behind her and adds his arms to hers. She turns her head up and back to study him in the fading light.

"What's happening here, Troy? Between us, I mean."

"I honestly don't know, but I do know I'm not going to die without a fight and I'm going to do everything I can to make sure you don't die either."

Now it's Troy's turn to shiver. "We need to get out of these wet clothes before we get hypothermia."

That comment gets a well-deserved eyebrow raise from Sharpay.

"You know what I'm talking about", he insists.

"You're right. Let's try to follow that trail and see where it leads."

"What trail?", he asks dumbly.

Sharpay points to a well-marked trail to the right of the sandbar. Imagine the luck of landing on a sandbar that has a trail leading down to it. They lock hands and trudge slowly and painfully up the trail and silently pray that their luck holds.

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

Jake and Eve reappear about an hour after Gabriella and Ryan finish their dinner. They appear much more ... relaxed, but Jake still looks a bit anxious. And anxious is not something you want to see in sociopath.

"See... I told you the food wasn't drugged", Jake sneers at them.

"Thank you", Gabriella says politely. "It was delicious."

"Yeah, well. We do try."

Jake starts a much needed campfire and Eve starts to sway in front of it as if she's dancing to her own private music.

"Alright, kiddos. I'm bored", announces Jake as he executes an exaggerated stretch.

Gabriella and Ryan look nervously at each other and she turns her left hand over and clasps tightly onto his right where they are handcuffed together.

"Well... what are you waiting for? Show us some entertainment! I know ... dance for us. ... Never mind, you can't even get up."

"How 'bout a song, Jakey? Miss Edith wants to 'ear a song", croons Eve.

"A song! Great idea, Evie. Alright, you two ... get with the singing. And it better be good."

Gabriella looks meaningfully at Ryan and then leans over and whispers into his ear.

"Any time now!", shouts Jake.

Ryan sits up a little and clears his throat. There's no way he can do his warm-up exercises here. That crazy guy would shoot him. Therefore, he hums quickly to find the key and starts singing softly, directly into Gabriella's eyes.

_Once in a lifetime  
there's no second chance  
so I believe that you and me  
should grab it while we can_

Smiling wistfully at him, Gabriella joins in.

_Make it last forever  
and never give it back _

She actually surprises herself at how clear and strong her voice sounds. She's always, secretly, thought that her voice sounded a little weak and nasal.

Ryan smiles warmly at her and grasps her hand more tightly, as if drawing strength from her and simultaneously giving it back to her.

_It's our turn, and I'm loving' where we're at _

They become completely caught up in the song and realize that the meaning of the words are far more poignant than when Gabriella sang this song with Troy.

_Because this moment's really all we have _

Everything else fades away as they sing only to each other, forgetting for this one fleeting moment where they are and the uncertain future they face.

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

After a short five minute hike, they find a small cabin at the end of the trail.

"It looks deserted", Troy says as they approach the tiny log structure.

"Yeah", agrees Sharpay. "Possibly just a vacation cabin."

They walked around the building and notice that there's no driveway leading to it. There's just another trail leading off in the opposite direction from the river.

"That's probably a good thing", Troy observes. "If there's no road leading directly here, then it's less likely that The Hunter will be able to find us here."

They try the doors and windows, but they're all locked. While standing at the rear entrance, Troy tells Sharpay, "Shield your eyes." Then, he uses his elbow and breaks out a pane of glass closest to the door knob. He reaches through and unlocks the door and opens it.

As an explanation, Troy just says, "I just love those Law and Order marathons. You can pick up a lot of useful information from those."

"Wow, who would have thought --- Troy Bolton, a B&E man. Good to know you have something to fall back on, if that whole basketball thing falls through.

"Let's check things out; see what we can find that's useful", Troy suggests.

After five minutes of searching, they've find that the electricity is off, which is fine because they can't chance drawing any attention by turning on the lights anyway. Also, Sharpay finds one can of peaches covered in dust and Troy finds a stack of old, musty wool blankets. However, the greatest find of all was the solar water heater. Because even if there's no electricity to pump the water through the pipes, there was hot water already in the tank. Using buckets, they fill up the tub with hot water from the drain spiggot at the bottom of the water tank and Troy being the gentleman that he is, allows Sharpay to go first.

Feeling human once again, Sharpay exits the small bathroom, wrapped in one of the wool blankets.

"I'm so glad to get that sand washed out of my hair", she says as she runs her fingers through her wet hair.

When she doesn't hear a response, she looks over to find Troy staring at her with thinly veiled interest. A blush creeps up her cheeks and suddenly feels a need to busy herself elsewhere.

Sharpay nervously clears her throat and announces, "Umm, I'm going to see if I can get those peaches open. The moon's full, so I'm going to work on it on the porch."

She turns and walks off towards the kitchen, leaving Troy staring after her.

_What the hell am I doing? I've got a perfectly nice girlfriend waiting for me to save her life. Maybe that's part of the problem ... maybe Gabriella is too perfect. I've always felt ... inadequate around her._

Troy absentmindedly licks his lips and groans in disgust when he swipes a clump of sand into his mouth. _Yuck! Maybe a bath is the best thing to do right now and plus the water's probably cool enough to count this as a cold shower._

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

_Everyday!_

When Gabriella and Ryan finish the song, the entire world has melted away ... leaving only the two of them.

"Bravo! Brava!", Eve says gleefully as she claps with much enthusiasm.

"Yeah, I got to agree. For a couple of losers, that wasn't half bad", Jake says as he slowly approaches them. "Unfortunately", he says, casually, as he reaches down to grab Gabriella's free hand. Gabriella and Ryan are both holding their breaths, fearful of what he's going to do. "...it's bedtime, so we don't have time for an encore. I'm going to move you two into the tent." His voice is almost like a seductive whisper now.

He first uncuffs Gabriella from Ryan and reattaches her to a tree branch. Then, he uncuffs Ryan and harshly pulls him into the tent, ignoring his pained protests. After Ryan is secured in the tent, Jake moves Gabriella in and reattaches her to Ryan's right hand and then, exits without another word.

"Are you okay?", Gabriella says in a voice steeped in her own anguish.

"Yeah, I'm fine", Ryan says through gritted teeth.

"No, you're not. You don't have to be brave for me. I can see you're hurting."

"Well, at least the pain let's me know I'm still alive", Ryan sighs.

"Yeah, there is that", she agrees sadly.

After propping his leg up again under the spare sleeping bag, Gabriella settles herself down on Ryan shoulder and places their combined hands on his chest.

"Is it okay, if I lie here? Am I hurting you?"

"No", Ryan squeaks, "I ... I mean no. It's fine. It's ... nice even."

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

"Sharpay, where are you?", Troy asks as his eyes search the nearly dark room.

"Over here", she calls, "I'm next to the window."

He looks towards the voice and sees her silhouette standing in front of the rear window. The way the moonlight is streaming in, blanketing her figure in its warm glow, she looks almost effulgent.

"Hi."

"I found a can opener and got the peaches open, but I've been waiting for you", Sharpay tells him.

"Great, I'm so hungry, I'd ... well, nevermind", Troy finishes sheepishly.

It's too dark for him to see her smile, but he can almost imagine how her lips curve up when she jokes, "Get over here before they both fall off."

A couple of minutes later, they're huddled over the open aluminum can, taking turns dipping their disposable plastic forks in and sampling the succulent sweetness of heavy syrup doused canned peaches.

"Hmmm, this is heaven", mumbles Sharpay.

Once the peaches are finished, they share the juice until the entire can is empty.

"Man, I think that just made me hungrier", Troy grumbles as he pulls his blanket closer around him. They'd each shaken off as much grim and sand from their clothes as they could and hung them in the bathroom to air dry.

"Hey, when this thing is over and we're back home", Sharpay says confidently, "I'll buy you that double cheeseburger."

"Thanks... I guess we should get some sleep. I'll take the sofa."

There's only one bed in the small one room cabin and one sofa which faces the empty and cold fireplace.

"Don't be ridiculous. We'll conserve more body heat if we sleep together in the bed."

"Sure", Troy says nervously.

They both climb onto the small full sized mattress. There aren't any sheets on it --- just a stripped mattress. Sharpay takes the left side and Troy the right. He's lying as close to her as possible without actually touching. He's wrapped in his blanket and she's wrapped in hers.

"You know ... ", she starts, "despite my upbeat prediction about cheeseburger dinners, the truth is ... we may not make it out of this alive."

Troy nods in agreement and then, realizing that she can't see him in the pitch black night, responds with a simple monosyllable, "Yeah."

"And well,... I just ..."

Suddenly, Troy becomes more alert, realizing exact where this conversation is going.

"I know exact what you're about to say and I ... I feel the same way... you ..."

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

Ryan wishes he could put his arms around her, but his left hand is cuffed to the tent pole, so instead he tries to talk to her to ease her ... and his fears.

"You know ... I'm actually kind of glad I'm here."

"What?!", Gabriella asks, incredulously.

"No, I mean ... I'm not glad this whole crazy thing is happening to us, but I'm glad I'm here with you. I ... I've liked you for a long time now --- Even before the summer", he adds hastily.

"Really? Actually, I really enjoyed our time together at Lava Springs. You're a lot of fun to be around."

Their conversation falls into an awkward silence.

"You know ... ", starts Gabriella, quietly, "we may not make it out of this alive."

Ryan nods in agreement and then, realizing that she can't see him in the pitch black night, responds with a simple monosyllable, "Yeah."

"And well,... I just ..."

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

"... don't want to die a virgin and neither do I", Troy finishes quickly.

"What?!", Sharpay screams and sits up straight in bed, forgetting for a second that she has nothing on under the blanket. It falls down and she quickly grabs it back up and holds the itchy wool up tightly under her neck. Luckily, it's so dark there's no way he can see anything.

He thought he'd died and gone to heaven when she popped up in bed and dropped the blanket. Although it was pitch dark inside the room, the moonlight streaming in through the uncovered windows, accented the profile of her breasts as clearly as if they were in a well-lit room. It's a cold night and her nipples were clearly peaked to sharp points. He feels a rush of lust in his groin right before she slams the door shut on his fantasies by pulling up the blanket.

"That's _not_ what I was going to say!", Sharpay continues. She scoots away from him and to the edge of the bed. "I ... I ... I don't think I'm going to tell you now", she huffs out as she clamps down on that blanket with a steal grip.

"I'm sorry", he says penitently. "It's just ... I've been feeling like I'm under a lot of pressure."

"Pressure?", she echoes with an unseen lift of her eyebrow.

"Well... you said it ... We're probably going to die tomorrow."

"Even so, that's the wrong reason to make love with someone. Especially ... if it's someone you care about...", she trails off into a whisper.

"Really? You care about me?"

"Of course. I've never made a secret of it. I've ... cared about you since ... God ... elementary school, if we're being honest."

"Wow. I ... um ... I never knew."

"That's because you were so wrapped up in yourself that you never noticed anything else."

"To be fair, I'm wasn't the only one wrapped up in myself."

"Touché, Bolton."

"Don't do that. Don't start hiding behind that ice princess persona because I don't believe that's really you. I saw small glimpses of the real you last summer; but, unfortunately, they were few and far between."

"I don't think this is really the right time or place for a lecture, Bo... Troy", she corrects herself at the last minute as her voice softens, slightly.

"You're absolutely right, but when we go out for those double cheeseburgers, we're going to have a serious discussion. In the meantime...", he slowly reaches over and touches her bare shoulder --- not a caress, just a steadying touch, "please tell me what you were going to say before I totally screwed up this conversation."

She scoots back onto the bed and closer to Troy and gently places her own hand atop his.

"Okay, but it's a little embarrassing."

"More embarrassing than just admitting to a girl that I'm a virgin?"

"Oh no, it's nowhere _near_ that embarrassing", she concedes cynically.

"Good."

"It's just ... I want to be held ... tonight. I don't want to be alone, you know?"

"God, Sharpay", he declares, "I'd be honored to hold you."

He pulls her down next to him and spoons up behind her. She curls into his back and threads her fingers through his and then places their joined hands on her stomach. Troy rubs his face into her hair and revels in the her scent.

"Thank you", she says quietly after a few minutes. "I've never felt more safe."

"Me, either."

They quickly let their exhaustion take them over and fall into a deep and surprisingly peaceful, sleep.

HSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSMHSM

"... don't want to die a virgin and I don't think you do either", Gabriella finishes quickly.

"What!?", Ryan squeaks in disbelief.

"Yeah, well. I surprised myself too." She's still laying curled up next to him and their fingers are now entwined and she nervously rubs her thumb back and forth across the back of his hand.

"Well...", Ryan starts pondering the logistics. "With my foot the way it is, I don't think I can..."

"Oh, don't worry... I mean I'll do all the work. You just ... relax", she giggles in spite of herself at the absurdity of her comment.

"But ... you don't really want to do this with me. I mean ... I know you'd rather..."

"Not necessarily... we've been ... drifting apart lately. Our lives are going in different directions. I'm actually interested in getting into more theater and Troy really just wants to concentrate on sports --- you know ... for college and all. It's funny really ... I mean he's the one who convinced me to try out for Twinkle Towne last year and now..."

"I'm really glad you did. You were terrific", Ryan says in all honesty.

"Singing makes me feel so ..."

"Alive?", Ryan provides.

"Yes! That's it."

Silence settles on them again and then Gabriella pushes herself up on her elbow and says, "I don't want you to think you're my second choice and if circumstances were different, we might have a chance... But why ... why should we deny ourselves this… if ..." she nearly faltered, but managed to finish, "if it's what we both want?"

Ryan's eyes burn into hers for what feels like an eternity, before he leans up to capture her lips with his.

TBC

Wow, did anyone see that coming? Because I sure didn't. It's always the quiet ones...

So... now I have a question. I originally wanted TroyPay to take the high road, so to speak, ie not give in to their baser instincts. Is that a good idea? Should RyElla really be the only ones gettin' any?

Oh and my research stuff... I'm not really sure how solar water heater work, but it seems reasonable that the water would still be hot from the solar panels. And I do know that you can drain water out of them from a spiggot on the bottom.

Please R& R, I value your opinions.


	5. The Morning After

**Prey**

_A High School Musical Fanfiction_

Disclaimer:See chapter 1

_Previously in Prey..._

_Silence settles on them again and then Gabriella pushes herself up on her elbow and says, "I don't want you to think you're my second choice and if circumstances were different, we might have a chance... But why ... why should we deny ourselves this… if ..." she nearly falters, but manages to finish, "if it's what we both want?"_

_Ryan's eyes burn into hers for what feels like an eternity, before he leans up to capture her lips with his._

**Chapter 5: The Morning After**

"Damn!", The Hunter screams as his knuckles slam against the metal of his pick-up truck and the tire iron clangs to the ground. Of all the bad luck, he has to get a flat in the middle of nowhere. Now the damn tire iron just slipped and he's banged up his knuckles.

While reaching down to pick up the errant tool, he's practically blinded by the headlights of a vehicle that has just pulled up behind him. Blinking against the harsh light, The Hunter holds a hand up to his eyes to try and see more clearly.

"Need some help there", comes a friendly voice.

The Hunter looks up to see a park ranger standing amiably next him. He glances over the man's shoulder to study the Jeep Cherokee standing empty behind the ranger --- no partner.

"Why ... yeeess. That'd be much appreciat'd", The Hunter replies amicably as his hand tightens around the tire iron.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

Jake is leaning back against a log as he gazes lazily into the flames of the campfire.

"Eve luv? ... How 'bout you throwing a couple more logs on the fire?"

"Not bloody likely. You're a pig, Jake."

"Oink, oink, pet. Oink, oink."

With a deep sigh, he hoists himself up and lumbers over to the stack of firewood which is next to the tent. However, as his hand reaches down to pick up a log, he freezes and a small smile appears on his lips. Quickly, he grabs up the logs and heads back to Eve.

"You won't believe what I just heard, luv", Jake tells her as he unceremoniously dumps the wood onto the fire.

"Jake!", Eve shrieks indignantly as the sparks fire up from the fire, "Are you trying to burn me boobies off?"

"Keep your voice down and listen..."

Then, in the quiet of the forest they both hear it --- the distinctive sounds of a couple engaged in a dance as old as time --- deep, throaty moans; seductive panting; and the sharp intake of breath.

"Oh my... It sounds like our innocent little teenagers aren't behaving themselves. You think we should break it up?", Eve asks with a wicked light in her eyes.

"Naaah, let them have their fun. You know as well as I do, our boss isn't going to let them live even if they win this silly game of his. So since it's their last night on this earth, I say we let them enjoy it. ... Now, you got any of those tiny little marshmallows. I do so love those in my hot cocoa."

"Oooo, Jakeeeey. There's enough time for marshmallows later", she croons as she approaches him and slowly drapes herself across his lap.

"Ah, you're my ripe, wicked plum."

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

Sharpay wakes slowly and opens her eyes to find herself staring at the most hideous table lamp she has ever seen. It has a Mallard duck with real feathers mounted on a wooden stand and a pole shooting out of its back with a grotesque plaid lampshade sitting on top. _ Definitely, not my room._

Then, the previous day comes streaming into her head like some sort of sick digital video-on-demand feed --- the boring ride in the car, the suspicious guides, the hike to the campsite, the confrontation with The Hunter, his crazy game, running with Troy, laughing with Troy, being pushed into the river by Troy, finding Troy, beating on Troy, hugging Troy, sharing peaches with Troy, being propositioned by Troy, and finally sleeping cuddled up next to Troy.

She stiffens at that last thought and then, she realizes she's not the only one _stiff_. At the beginning of the night, they were two people in two blankets. However, during the night, something had shifted and now they're two people under one blanket and his bare flesh is pressed tightly up against her bare flesh with his hand gently grasping her ... breast. He shifts slightly in his sleep, just the beginnings of awakening and then, she feels that one obvious part of his bare flesh which is currently wide awake and _pulsing_ against her rear.

Suddenly, his entire body goes as rigid as his ...

Sharpay's sure he's just awaken, but both of them seem to be trying to pull off the illusion that they're still unconscious. As surprised as she is to find herself in this position, she has to admit (if only to herself) that being held like this is actually nice. It's not like the rough groping she's had to tolerate from fast dates. No, this is nice, soothing and completely natural. It just feels right.

Finally, she breaks the silence.

"Hi."

Troy starts to jerk his hand away from her, but she quickly grabs it and holds him in place.

"Don't...", she commands softly, "I'm not ready to give up this fantasy yet."

"What fantasy?", he speaks for the first time.

"The fantasy that we're just a boy and a girl, sleeping together in ...", she looks around the room for inspiration, "...in your eccentric great uncle's hunting lodge."

"_My _eccentric great uncle's hunting lodge?"

"Of course, no one in my family would have such horrible décor."

"Sharpay, I really need to get up ... I ... I mean get away from you ... I mean ... ugh ... I'm not saying this right." He takes a deep breath and tries again. "What I mean is, if I don't get out of this bed in the next two minutes, I'm not going to be responsible for what happens."

He tries to pull away again, but she reaches back behind him and grasps onto his backside, pulling him back to her.

"God Troy...", she says with anguish in voice. "I want this so much... but..."

"I know ... and you're were right last night ... this isn't the right time or place." He buries his head into her hair, relishing the scene of generic shampoo and Sharpay. "But when we get out of here..."

"Absolutely."

They reluctantly release each other and scramble to their respective edges of the bed. Sharpay looks back over her shoulder. She can't resist taking one clear, unobstructed look at him, but her eyes are drawn to the wall behind him and she gives a little squeak.

Troy whirls around to look at Sharpay, clutching a blanket to her chest (darn!) and looking not at him, but behind him. He thinks the worst when she sees her look over his shoulder --- thinking The Hunter must have found them. He whirls around, ready for action ... to find ... nothing. Well, he sees nothing that looks out of the ordinary, like a crazed maniacal killer, for instance.

"What is it? I don't see anything."

"Look at the wall, Troy", Sharpay says with excitement. She rushes around the bed and over to the wall in question. Then, she rips a framed picture off and spins around to face Troy.

"It's a map!", she exclaims as she points to the picture. "See... it's a map of the area with this cabin clearly marked. Right here!" Sharpay points to the picture. "See here's where we are and ...", she traces her finger along the map, "here's Table Rock. We can still make it! We can still save them!" She jumps excitedly.

It's hard for Troy not to get caught up in her enthusiasm, especially when she's jumping up and down in her blanket and he knows exactly what's under that blanket.

"It looks like we should be there with time to spare. Our little dip in the river actually put us closer."

"Yeah well, it's not like you planned it or anything, so you can't take credit for that", Sharpay points out.

Troy flips the picture over and removes the map. Then, they go check out their wet clothes and find that they're still damp, but they have no other choice but to wear them. It's not like they can go traipsing around in the forest wrapped up in old army blankets.

Fifteen minutes later, they're following the trail that will lead them straight to Table Rock.

"Okay, it looks like we follow this trail", Troy points to the map, "which will lead us back up so we can cross back over the river, here, at this bridge."

"Sounds like a plan."

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

Gabriella slowly opens her eyes to find herself draped across Ryan's still-sleeping body. Why had she never noticed how beautiful he was before? And he _was_ beautiful, not handsome in a huggedly manly way, but _beautiful._ And so opposite from her. Just looking at her dark hand against his pale chest, further illustrated that thought. And yet despite their differences, she had felt strongly drawn to him yesterday and she hopes to God it's not just because their facing this life threatening situation together.

She'd always assumed that when she gave up her virginity it would be to Troy and yet ... she feels no regrets over their actions. The only regret she has is that they got together too late and she might be dead before the end of the day.

Ryan groans slowly and starts to stretch his muscles before moaning when he tries to move his ankle. "Ow", he murmurs and then, opens his eyes to see Gabriella's staring back at him.

"Morning", she greets.

"Umm, hi." He's looking at her uncertainly, trying to gage her face to see if there's any regret there, but he only sees ... love? He's stunned when he sees the adoration in her eyes ... and directed at him.

"How are you feeling?"

"Wonderful."

She giggles softly. "Really?"

"Oh, yes."

"Wakey, wakey!", calls a dreamy, sing-song voice from outside the tent. "Are you two little sprites decent?"

Fearing that Eve would barge in, Gabriella jerks up quickly and starts to awkwardly pull her panties and pants back on. Then, she starts to pull Ryan's boxers up for him since he's still somewhat incapacitated from his injury. After all, she's the one who pulled them down the night before. She freezes when she hears Eve's voice again.

"Take your time, ducks. Enjoy it while you can, but breakfast is in 15 minutes. Just shout when you're ready." They hear her walking away.

Ryan's underwear is only half way up when Gabriella looks up at him. "What was that all about?"

Ryan shrugs uncomfortably. She's so close to him that he can feel her breath on his ... And it's starting to react.

"Oh!", Gabriella says in surprise and just a little bit of pride. After all, her presence is what caused this reaction. And she's most impressed. She hadn't been able to see him last night and now ... wow!

She hesitantly reaches over and touches him.

"Wh...what are you doing?", Ryan squeaks in a very unmanly voice.

"You heard what she said, 'take your time and enjoy it while you can'. So I'm going to enjoy it."

With that, she lowers her head and takes him into her mouth.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

"I'm bored", Jake complains. "How long have they been at it?"

"20 minutes, baby. Remember, it was your idea to let them have their fun. You're not changing your mind, are you?"

"Naw, I'm a romantic, but I'm still bored." Then, he leans over and picks up his backpack. "I have an idea. I'll just call the boss and see how the hunt's going."

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

They've been steadily trudging uphill for the past hour and the weather is quickly deteriorating. Clouds are covering the sun and the wind has really picked up. It's blowing straight into their faces and chilling them to the bone in their still damp clothes.

"When this is over, I'm going to soak in my Jacuzzi tub for at least three hours", Sharpay tells him.

"I'm going to eat an entire cow", Troy retorts.

"If you bring the steaks, I'll let you share my tub", she says with a sincere smile.

They've been holding hands since they started out this morning. Yep, things are definitely changing.

Troy looks over at her with a smile and says, "That's a plan."

Then, his eyes swing back up the trail and stops in surprise. "Oh my God, Sharpay, look at that!", he says excitedly as he points where he's staring. "It's a park ranger! We're saved, Sharpay! We're saved!"

They both start running up the trail and calling to the ranger, but he's standing at the top and facing away from them and with the wind blowing fiercely into faces, their voices are being blown right back at them too and he can't hear them.

TBC

I am so totally evil. Originally, I wasn't going to end it here, but I decided I had this whole cliffhanger thing going, so...

Please don't hate me.

There were a couple of Buffy references in this chapter. Anybody find them?

And I must say... I never intended for there to be so much Ryella in this story, but I just can't seem to control those two.

I want to spotlight my favorite reviewer from the last chapter: ** giantzacface**

She made my day when she commented on the line about Gabriella's voice. She said,

"_i just about died laughing when i read this line: _She's always, secretly,

thought that her voice sounded a little weak and nasal _- mostly, cause its_ _exactly what i think every time i hear her singing voice. poor girl. use your_ _adult voice, honey. we've all seen you naked, you gotta grow up at some_ _point."_ giantzacface, I think you speak for all of us, sister. Please enjoy and R & R. Thanks. 


	6. The Trap

**Prey**

_A High School Musical Fanfiction_

Disclaimer:See chapter 1

_Previously in Prey..._

_Then, he looks back up the trail and stops to get a better look. "Oh my God, Sharpay, look at that!", he says excitedly as he points up the trail. "It's a park ranger! We're saved, Sharpay! We're saved!"_

_They both start running up the trail and calling to the ranger, but he's standing at the top of the hill and facing away from them and with the wind blowing fiercely into their faces, their voices are being blown right back at them too and he can't hear them._

**Chapter 6: The Trap**

Suddenly, Troy hears what sounds like a familiar voice and stops to listen.

_A long time ago  
In a land far away  
Lived a pineapple princess Tiki  
She's as sweet as a peach  
In a pineapple way  
But so sad that she hardly speaky _

Troy looks puzzled and Sharpay's eyes grow wide with fear. They look up to see the park ranger reach into his pocket as he starts to turn in their direction.

Sharpay turns to Troy, and without a word, shoves him as hard as she can into the gully and then dives in after him. She lands on him with a soft umphf.

"Wha...", Troy starts in protest, but Sharpay covers his mouth with her hand to stifle his voice.

She lays her body flush against his and glances fearfully up the short hill. Troy angles his head back to follow her line of sight and feels his heart nearly leap out of his throat when he sees those familiar ostrich skinned boots stop on the trail above them. They can clearly hear his end of the telephone conversation from where they're hiding.

"... you're bored? Who the hell cares, son?! Don't you dare call me back again! No matter what. I'll call you when it's done, then you'll know to take care of them. ... Of course they're not going to win and even if they do, I'll still kill them. None of those damn teenagers is walking out of here alive. Got it? ... Good!"

The Hunter slams the iPhone back into his pocket and they hear him storm down the trail in the direction that Troy and Sharpay had just come from.

Sharpay gradually relaxes and moves her hand away from Troy's mouth.

"Sorry...", she mumbles in apology.

"How did you know?", Troy asks with awe in his voice.

"_Humu humu nuku nuku apua'a_", Sharpay explains.

Troy involuntarily winces when she says those words, still remembering that horrible evening at Lava Springs when she and Ryan sang it to him.

"That's my ringtone for Ryan", she continues. "The Hunter must have my phone and Jake has Ryan's."

Then, she shudders, realizing how close they came to getting caught. Troy reaches up and takes her shoulders in his hands and whispers, "You just saved my life. Thank you."

He pulls her closer to him and kisses her full on the lips. Troy nips gently on her lower lip and slips his tongue into her mouth. She opens up to him hungrily. They are both trembling against each other and neither of them is sure whether it's their emotions, their fear, or the bone-chilling cold that's seeping into their damp clothes. They kiss feverishly for a few minutes and then, Troy moves his lips up her face to kiss her cheeks, each closed eyelid, and finally, her forehead. She slowly opens her eyes and raises herself up to look at him.

"You're welcome. God... I can't believe you just did that. I mean I must look horrible", Sharpay says as she runs a hand through her limp hair. "I'm not wearing any makeup and my hair..."

"You look beautiful, Sharpay. Beautiful and strong and confident", he tells her sincerely as he looks deeply into her eyes.

"I ... I think I love you, Troy Bolton. And not for selfish reasons either. Not just because we'd look so good together, 'cause we would, of course, and I'd do wonders for you reputation..."

"Of course", he adds.

"But I love you for you."

"Me too", he murmurs.

"Really?"

"Yes, really. I love you, Sharpay and I've ... I've never told a girl that before."

"Really?", she asks again. Both of them know who she's thinking about.

"Really."

She lays her head down on his chest and they enjoy the short-lived peace.

After first insuring that The Hunter has indeed gone, they scamper back up onto the trail and look out downhill in the direction he went.

"You know things have changed now, right?", Troy asks her, solemnly.

"Yeah", she replies in the same serious tone.

"We should have known this all along. He's going to kill us even if we do win his silly game, so..."

She finishes his thought, "We need to change the rules of this game. It's time for The Hunter to become The Hunted."

"Yeah... but what match are we to a skilled hunter with a high powered rifle?"

"Are you kidding me? You're Troy Bolton, the youngest basketball captain ever of the championship East High Wildcats."

He grins at that. "And you're Sharpay Evans, the star of 17 school drama productions."

"Should have been 18", she mutters as she starts to pace up and down the trail.

"You're right", he concedes.

She raises her eyebrow at _that _comment. "_Really?_"

"Well... I've always thought your voice was stronger than Gabi's." But before, this conversation turns dark or gossipy, he changes the direction. "But hey... how'd you know that I was the youngest basketball captain?"

"Oh, I keep up, Bolton."

"Yeah... are you a big fan?", he can't help but break into a grin.

"More like ... know thy enemy."

"Well, then with an unstoppable force like us, he doesn't stand a chance."

"All we need is a plan."

With a knowing look, Troy says, "Well, I actually have an idea."

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

Things finally quieten down in the tent and Jake repeats the laborious task of moving them back out into the open.

"I must say ... ", Jake starts, "for a couple of kids from 'burbs, you two, certainly have lots of stamina. 'Cept I thought you were with the other guy." He finishes with his eyes boring into Gabriella.

She blushes brightly and has the decency to look guilty, but doesn't reply.

"Anyway, breakfast is up. Hope you're in the mood for Wheatabits. They're my favorite."

Ryan is propped up against a tree with Gabriella sitting next to him and they gratefully accept the dry cereal he gives them and the two bottles of water.

Just as Jake is about to settle down with his cereal, the cell phone starts talking to him.

_Oh, Duckie?_

_It's Mommy._

_Pick up the phone, dear._

_Oh, Duckie?_

_It's Mommy._

_Pick up the phone, dear._

Jake lifts a brow and glares at the phone which he left laying on a log.

"What the hell is that?", he growls.

"Oh! That's my mom", Ryan explains hurriedly. "That's her ringtone."

"Then... you'd better answer it, shouldn't you?"

Jake pulls out an evil looking hunting knife from his belt and walks towards Ryan with the phone in one hand and the knife in the other. He tosses the phone to Ryan and harshly grabs Gabriella from behind and presses the knife to her throat.

"And you'd better make it good."

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

Troy takes charge of their "plan" as they both remove their shoe laces.

"You're sure this is going to work?", Sharpay asks. She hands over her own laces and he ties all four of them together.

Troy and Sharpay have moved down the trail in the direction The Hunter went and they're now sitting at a 90 degree bent in the trail. They've reasoned out that The Hunter will follow the trail back to the cabin and then, realize that he must have missed them and then, he'll more than likely head back in their direction, but at a much faster pace, since he'll be pissed that he missed them.

He takes in a deep breath before replying. "I think we have an honest shot at it..."

"Don't use the word _shot,_ please."

"Sorry, but ... we'll only have one chance. If we blow it..."

"Right, then let's not blow it, but... I think we need to change the lead roles around."

"What?", he asks incredulously. "No! It's too dangerous."

"We don't have a lot of time to argue about this."

"Then, let's not."

"Listen to me, you ... you ... jock! Do you really think you can convince this guy that you're injured? I mean, let's be honest with ourselves, here. You're a great singer, but as an actor..."

"So what do you want to do?", Troy asks, sounding a little deflated as he silently accepts her assessment of his acting skills.

"I'll be the bait", and then, seeing that he's about to interrupt her, she says, "Wait a minute. Let me explain. I'll be the poor injured girl who's fallen down on the trail. He'll see me as an easy target and he won't even think about walking right up to me."

"What if he doesn't? What if he decides to just shoot from fifty yards away?"

"He won't. He's already missed us by trying that. No. I think this time he'll want to take his time and do it right. Then, he'll be so intent on getting to me that he won't notice your tripwire", she points to their conjoined shoelaces which Troy has tied across the trail about four inches off the ground.

Sharpay continues, "Once he's sprawled on the ground. You come out of hiding and tackle him like you do in basketball."

"That's _foot_ball, Sharpay. We don't tackle people in basketball."

"Well then, slam duck him or something."

Troy rubs a tired hand over his face. "It's _dunk_, not _duck_."

"What.ever!" She's starting to get irritated at him. "I'm telling you, Troy, this will work."

"I just hope you're right."

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

"H...hi, Mom", Ryan is trying to sound cheerful.

"_Duckie! We haven't heard from you, and your father and I were starting to get worried. Is everything going well?"_

"Oh yeah, Mom. Everything's fine."

"_Good, good. Now, aren't you glad we did all that camping? Have you had a chance to show them all the yoga positions we usually do?"_

"Uh no, we haven't had time. They've kept us pretty tied up, actually."

Gabriella squeaks when Jake presses harder against her throat with the knife. He gives Ryan a warning glare.

"I...I mean we're busy, Mom. Very busy."

"_Good, dear. Well, Mommy loves you, Ryan, and tell Sharpay I love her too. You know, this is an excellent opportunity to get to know more down-to-earth people. You shouldn't surround yourself with so many from that country club set."_

"Oh, don't worry, Mom. These people are very different from anyone I've ever met."

"_Good, dear. Your father and I have a tee-off at noon, so I'd better get going."_

"Okay, Mom. Oh and Mom? You have been feeding my cat, right? I wouldn't want him to feel neglected."

"_Of course, Duckie. We'd never forget the cat. Bye now."_

"Bye, Mom."

He hands the phone back to Jake and Jake releases Gabriella who quickly cuddles up to Ryan.

"Good job. You had me worried for second, but you did good. Now, finish your breakfast", Jake orders with a satisfied smirk.

"I didn't know you had a cat", Gabriella says in a low tone after Jake walks away.

"I don't."

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

Mrs. Evans clicks off her cellphone and looks over at her husband.

"Alert the police, dear. It's happened again", she says calmly.

"He gave you the signal?", at her nod, Mr. Evans picks up the desk telephone and starts the call. "I'm worried. We haven't received a ransom request yet. And they must not be very intelligent kidnappers to still have those phones on. I mean, doesn't everyone know that cellphones have GPS transmitters in them?"

"Yes, that thought had occurred to me, as well", Mrs. Evans notes as a deep crease appears in her brow.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

Sharpay is standing in the middle of the trail and Troy is hidden in the woods. The trap is laid. All they need is the fly.

"Brr ... brr", Sharpay vibrates her lips in a motorboat sound and quickly runs her splayed hands up and down in front of her face.

"Mak ... mak ... mak", she claws out into the air.

"Eeee ... eeee ... eeee", she repeats the hand movements.

"Energy", she says slowly as she again repeats the hand movements, but much more slowly now and accompanied with deep breathing. She sits down on the trail and casts a worried look at Troy who gives her a hardy thumbs up and a smile that doesn't quite meet his eyes.

Now, she's ready. She's just waiting for her cue to start the most important performance of her life.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

_Damn! How could he have missed them?_

The Hunter is storming down the path back towards Table Rock where, surely, those two teenagers must be by now. Not that it matters in the long run. He'll still kill them. It's just that it would have been sweeter to have won fair and square.

He comes around the bend and sees, to his delight, the blond girl sitting in the middle of the trail.

"My! My! What do we have here? Where's your boyfriend hiding, little girl?"

He obviously startles the girl because she jumps to her feet in surprise. She is like a deer catch in the headlights and she seems frozen to the spot.

"He ... he didn't make it out of the river. He drowned", she sobs as tears cut trails down her dirty cheeks.

"Hell, that's no fun at all. And this isn't either. Go on, girl. At least put up a little fight", he urges her.

With a convulsive cry, she turns and starts to hobble off up the path, limping heavily on her right leg. He slows down, wanting to savor the victory. It isn't what he'd hoped for ... killing a wounded animal isn't as challenging as a long, thrilling hunt, but like his dead mama used to say, "Beggars can't be choosers."

The Hunter picks up his pace a little when she rounds a bend in the trail and temporarily disappears from his view. However, as he nears the turn, his instincts tell him to be careful. Something's not right. As he comes around the corner, a smile creeps onto his face. The little blond is lying sprawled in the middle of the path, obviously having fallen down.

Obviously.

His heart is telling him to hurry up and get this finished, but his mind is screaming that something is not right.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

Sharpay looks up at him with stark raving terror in her eyes. Actually, she really is frightened, so it's only about half acting and half reality.

He's almost at the trip wire.

_Don't look at it_, she orders herself. _And don't look at Troy._

She had easily jumped over the line tied across the path when she came around the corner and then, pretended to fall down to insure that he'd come straight to her.

_What's taking him so long? It looks like he's slowing down._

"Tsk, tsk, tsk", The Hunter says as he stops directly in front of the shoestring trap. Then, he takes his knife out of his belt and reaches down and cuts the string. "Now, little darling, you didn't _really _think that would fool me, did you?"

TBC

YET ANOTHER CLIFFHANGER!!!

Thank you to all those who've taken the time to leave a review. I really means the world.

Please R & R.

To: Umm

While I do appreciate your honesty and I do remember reading something from someone who said I wasn't responding to their reviews anymore, I can't find that review and you've got to believe me, I don't not like you anymore. I'm just forgetful. Give me another chance. Sign your next review and I'll respond.

And please forgive me if I find humor in odd situations. I wasn't really striving for realism here. If you want that, go read _The Most Dangerous Game_. But be warned... there's no romance in that story.

And finally, sorry this isn't as good as you'd like and yes, I have read When Dreams Defer and it's brilliant, guess I'm not.

Oh AND another thing... I review stories all the time. Currently, my favorite story is The Music In Me. And yet despite all the _brilliant_ observations I've made in the my reviews, that author has yet to respond to one of my reviews. Oh my... you think she doesn't like? (that's sarcasm)


	7. The Fight for Survival

**Prey**

_A High School Musical Fanfiction_

A/N: If you're like me, when you're in a hurry, you just scan for dialog and skip all the descriptive stuff. Well, please don't do that here. This is one of the hardest chapters I've ever written. There's lots of action (I hope) and not much talking, so please take the time and read it thoroughly. Thanks, j

Disclaimer:See chapter 1

_Previously in Prey..._

"_Tsk, tsk, tsk", The Hunter says as he stops directly in front of the shoestring trap. Then, he takes his knife out of his belt and reaches down and cuts the string. "Now, little darlin', you didn't really think that would fool me, did you?"_

**Chapter 7: The Fight for Survival **

Any acting Sharpay had been doing before, flies off the side of the mountain now. Her eyes grow wide with fear and she starts crab-walking backwards up the trail. She glances over to where Troy was hiding and he's not there.

_Where the hell was he?_

The Hunter smiles wickedly as he lifts the rifle up to his shoulder and takes aim.

Moving so fast that he's no more than a blur, Troy launches into the air heading directly towards The Hunter. A split second before he hits the other man, Troy hears a sharp noise pierce the silence of the forest. It sounds just like a hammer heavily hitting a hardwood plank. By the time Troy's brain registers what he heard, he is slamming full speed into The Hunter. The two men go careening off the trail and into the thick undergrowth of the forest. The rifle goes clattering down to the trail, smoke rising ominously from its barrel.

Sharpay doesn't even see Troy coming until he tackles The Hunter and they both go flying off into the woods.

_Hey, he __**did**__ tackle him after all._

Then, before her eyes can track where they landed, she feels an agonizingly sharp pain in her right shoulder. It feels like someone hit her with a sledgehammer, but there's no one there. She lands flat against the ground from the force of the blow. Next, she hears a sharp pop come from where The Hunter had been a second earlier.

_Weird. _ _To hear a sound, but there's no one there to make it._

She instinctively reaches up to touch her shoulder, but recoils her hand back when it feels wet. She stares down at her hand in shock --- it's covered in blood.

_How'd that get there?_

Then, it hits her almost as hard as that sledgehammer.

_I've been shot. Oh God, I've been shot._ _And hell! What is that God-awful noise? Please, Simon, give that girl a thumbs down. Her singing sounds like screeching or screaming... Screaming? Oh no... that's me!_

Sharpay is immediately jerked back to reality when she realizes she's screaming uncontrollably. She shuts her mouth instantly.

_I will not be one of those wimpy girls who in the horror movies starts screaming and then goes running into the woods and directly into the arms of the killer._

Deep breath... Good.

She cautiously takes a look at her shoulder and nearly succumbs to the horror movie victim again when she sees blood gushing out of a huge hole in her shirt... in her shoulder, to be more correct.

_Damn it! This is not going to end like this! I just find my guy and now this... Shit!_

Cautiously, she clamps a hand over the wound. Even if she'd never had first aid training like that know-it-all Gabriella, she has sense enough to know to try to stop the bleeding.

_Shit! Shit! And shit! Touching it makes it hurt worse._

But she doesn't let go. Blinking back the tears that have sprung up, she slowly shakes her head from side to side to clear her thoughts.

_Where did everyone go? Troy? _

She slowly stands up and immediately regrets it as dizziness and nausea rush through her.

_Oh... bad idea._

She sinks back down and instead decides to crawl slowly over to a tree and then, leans her back against it --- closing her eyes. A sound even louder than her own pounding heart causes her to open them again. There was a scream --- followed by silence. Someone is coming out of the underbrush. She only hopes to God it's Troy.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

When Troy slams into the big man they both go flying off the trail and into the nearly impassable thicket. The brushwood is littered with brambles and thorn bushes and both become instantly tangled by the thick scrubs and sharp barbs. The thorns are clinging to their clothes and ripping up their hands and faces, but it doesn't seem to slow down either one of them.

Troy vaguely registers hearing a scream, but with the rushing sound of blood pounding in his ears, it sounds like it's coming from very far away.

As they struggle against each other, The Hunter manages to pull a large knife out of its leather sheath and tries to drive it up under Troy's ribs.

Troy feels a sharp sting in his side and quickly grabs onto the handle of the knife and tries to wrestle it always from The Hunter.

They stand facing each other, both with their hands on the knife and both struggling to maintain that hold. Suddenly, Troy is able to angle the knife away from him and down and with a sharp push drives it into the hunter's thigh.

The Hunter screams in agony and pushes Troy away from him with all his might.

Troy is taken off guard by the man's cry and The Hunter is able to push him backwards towards the ground. Troy hits hard with a thud and doesn't move.

The Hunter reaches down and pulls the embedded knife out of his leg and flings the traitorous weapon off to the side. Now with fire in his eyes, he slowly approaches his prey. The boy is laying on his stomach, unmoving. The Hunter angrily takes a booted foot and kicks at the young man and manages to turn him over. There is a large cut in the boy's forehead and blood is pouring out of it. The Hunter can now see that he landed on a sharp rock which must have sliced into his head.

The pain from his leg is making it hard to concentrate, but he feels confident, if a little disappointed, when he determines that his male prey is dead.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

A small gasp of anguish escapes her throat when she sees The Hunter, face and clothes stained with blood, come crawling up onto the trail.

He stares up at her with a vile look in his dark eyes.

"Well there, little darlin'. Wouldn't be sportin' of me to leave a wounded animal to die a slow painful death? Now would it?" His heavy panting is taking away from the menacing tone he is trying to project. "Especially, after I've already killed her mate."

Sharpay can't help but whimper when she hears his declaration. And she can't help the undeniably fearful look in her own eyes, despite how brave she wants to be. However, she's not going to go down without a fight and she doesn't take her eyes off of him. Then, she notices his searching gaze about the forest ground.

That's when she notices he's unarmed. And he must be looking for...

The rifle ... The Hunter's eyes zoom in on the object. It must have landed on the trail with a sliding motion and ended up partially buried under some leaves. Now it's lying about mid-distance between Sharpay and The Hunter and they are separated by no more than 15 feet.

He starts to slowly belly-crawl towards the rifle. Despite the bravado of his threat, Sharpay can see that's it's a struggle to even do this. He's pulling himself forward on both of his arms, but one of his legs appears useless.

Sharpay surges forward herself to try to reach the weapon or at least stop him from getting it. After her last stab at standing, she knows better than to try that again, so she adopts The Hunter's method and belly-crawls toward it. She has the use of both legs, but only one arm. Therefore, they should be almost evenly matched.

Inch by painful inch each of them slowly makes their way to their prize. Then, they are both within a foot of the rifle and whoever makes the next move first will reach it. Sharpay lunges herself forward with her uninjured left arm outstretched in front of her.

Amazingly, they both grab the rifle at the same time, but he's a big brute of a man at over 200 pounds and she's a petite little slip of a girl at barely 100 pounds. He starts to pull the rifle towards him, but Sharpay is not letting go. Amazingly, he tugs her along with the rifle and before she knows it she's nose to nose with this maniac.

"Well, I ... have to say, girl. You've got some spunk --- more than that light-weight boy of yours."

Sharpay is surprised at how angry that statement makes her. It's one thing to say that he killed Troy, but another to insult him.

"Let ... Go!", she growls at him.

"Don't think so. Remember I've got _two_ workin' arms."

He lifts one fist off the rifle to pummel her injured shoulder. However, before he can bring down that powerful arm, The Hunter is suddenly being dragged back across the trail by an unseen force. The Hunter twists around to defend himself and comes face to face with Troy Bolton. He starts viciously kicking out at Troy with those ostrich skin boots.

Troy has a large cut across his forehead that is bleeding down into his eyes, a smaller slash on his cheek and his lip is split open plus a multitude of other, small scrapes all over his arms and face. Yet, despite all this, he is still maneuvering well against the slower moving Hunter.

Troy scrambles to his feet to get away from those lethal boots and The Hunter slowly stands up. He is leaning heavily on his right leg and his left pant leg is torn and blood at his thigh.

"Hell, boy!", The Hunter growls, "Why won't you just die?"

"Thought you wanted a ch...challenge."

Troy reaches up a hand to wipe the blood out of his eyes and that's when The Hunter notices the teenager is holding his own hunting knife in his shaky hand.

_Damn! Should have known better than to throw away a perfectly good weapon._

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

When The Hunter lets go of the rifle, it lurches towards Sharpay and she takes it in her good hand and scoots away from him as fast as she can. She ends up back at her tree again and props herself back against it while she goes to work on the rifle until she hears a familiar voice talking to The Hunter. So intent on her chore that she doesn't even realize that it was Troy who had pulled The Hunter away from her until that moment. It's all the impetus she needs to complete her mission.

Her mother may be a rabid Vegan with a penchant for yoga, but her father's knowledge was the one she's depending on now. Her dad won the Silver Medal in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics for sharpshooting and he insisted that his whole family learn to shoot, including his Go Green wife and Drama Queen daughter. Sharpay is familiar with the Weatherby Mark V although she, herself, owns a Remington 700 PSS rifle.

Unfortunately, she's basically one handed right now and the rifle's just been fired from when that bastard hit her. Therefore, she knows she needs to expel that spent cartridge and get a new one into the chamber. To add to all these obstacles, its a right-handed firearm and she's left handed.

She puts the rifle down on its left side and braces it between her legs, holding the barrel with the rubber bottoms of her trail shoes. Next, she rotates the lever of the bolt-action rifle up 90 degrees and then pulls it back. The spent cartridge automatically ejects out onto the ground. Then, checking that she can see the next bullet, she shoves the bolt back into place and knows the next round has slid into the chamber, ready for use.

Then, and only then, does she allow herself the luxury of watching the battle waging before her.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

"What you think you're gonna do with that knife, boy? You're not man enough to use it on me", The Hunter taunts as he hobbles up closer to the unsteady youth.

"I was _man_ enough to do that to_ your_ leg", Troy says as he indicates to The Hunter's leg wound using the knife as a pointer.

"Ah, that was in the heat of the battle. You'd never be able to attack me in cold blood."

"But I would...", comes a voice from behind them.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

Sharpay is standing unsteadily against the tree with the rifle in her left hand, aimed at The Hunter and positioned at her waist.

Both men jerk their heads towards Sharpay and unfortunately, The Hunter takes advantage of the situation. Troy, still groggy from the blow to his head, is slow to react and quickly finds himself in an even more dangerous situation. The Hunter grabs Troy from behind and wrenches the knife from his hand. He quickly pulls the teen back against him, using Troy as a shield, and puts the knife to Troy's neck.

"Damn, little darlin', but you are full of surprises", The Hunter says as he slowly backs up, trying to put some distance between him and that rifle Sharpay is holding.

"Stop, right there. Don't move and ... and let Troy go. This is over now", Sharpay tells him with far more confidence than she feels.

"You don't know what you're sayin', darlin'. You wouldn't dare shoot me while I'm holding your little boyfriend, now would ..."

Before he can finish, a shot rings out and the hunter drops like a rock, straight to the ground.

Sharpay drops the rifle and collapses and Troy quickly closes on the 20 feet between them and rushes over to her.

"Sharpay... Shar! You did it. It's over. We're safe now. Stay awake, Sharpay, don't go to sleep yet", Troy pleads as he cradles her in his arms.

She slowly opens her eyes and looks up at him.

"That's it, baby. Don't go to sleep. Not yet. Hang in there. I'll get you to a hospital. God, Sharpay. You did it! You killed that bastard."

Troy chances a glance over at the prone figure of The Hunter to insure himself that he was, indeed, dead. And yes, he has one small round hole right in the side of his head.

"No...", she rasps out. "Wasn't me... didn't fire...", is all she manages to say before passing out.

"Step away from the girl, son", orders a calm, cool voice.

Troy looks in the direction of this unknown voice to see himself staring up the barrel of a rifle pointed right at him.

TBC

Thanks for all the great reviews you guys give. It's what keeps me going because we all know how much money I'm making off this.

About Sharpay's POV on being shot. I looked up some stuff on the web and some of it was SWAGing on my part (that's Scientific Wild Ass Guessing). Anyway, my cute, nerdy guy told me that bullets travel faster than the speed of sound and you know how when you hear a jet in the sky and you look up to see it, it's never where you think it would be. It's always a little behind that point. Someone told me once that that's because light travels faster than sound. I'm not explaining that right, but anyway, that's how I reasoned that she would feel the bullet hit her before she heard the shot go off.

And of course, I know absolutely nothing about guns, but I am a whiz on google.

Oh and because I, myself, am left handed, I will always take great care to only injure Sharpay on her right side. I'm just thoughtful like that.

Please R&R.


	8. The Rescue

**Prey**

_A High School Musical Fanfiction_

A/N: If you're like me, when you're in a hurry, you just scan for dialog and skip all the descriptive stuff. Well, please don't do that here. This is one of the hardest chapters I've ever written. There's lots of action (I hope) and not much talking, so please take the time and read it thoroughly. Thanks, j

Disclaimer:See chapter 1

_Previously in Prey..._

"_No...", she rasps out. "Wasn't me... didn't fire...", is all she manages to say before passing out._

"_Step away from the girl, son", orders a calm, cool voice. _

_Troy looks in the direction of this unknown voice to see himself staring up the barrel of a rifle, pointed right at him._

**Chapter 8: The Rescue **

"It's okay, Joe. That's the Bolton kid", comes another voice.

The man, Joe, immediately lowers his rifle and steps aside.

Instantly, someone is pulling Sharpay away from him and Troy tries with all his might to hang onto her.

"It's okay, Troy", says a reassuring female voice, "we're with the State Police. You're alright now. Everything's going to be alright..."

It's like he's hearing the voice from down a long, dark tunnel and it's getting more and more faint with each word until finally, the tunnel is capped off tight and he passes out.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

"Something's going terribly wrong, Jake", Eve says, but she isn't looking at him. She's staring into the long dead embers of the fire.

They're all lounging about the now burnt-out campfire. Gabriella and Ryan are still chained in their original location near the fire pit and Jake and Eve are on opposite sides.

Jake is lazily cleaning under his fingernails with the same knife that he used to threatened Gabriella. "Oh yeah, what's that, princess?"

"It's the sunshine, Jake."

"Tell me about it, luv", he prompts, but it's obviously to everyone but her that he really doesn't care what she's going to say. He's just trying to humor her.

"The sunshine is going to ruin my tea party", she says in that irritating sing-song voice. "The sunshine's going to take away all my dollies." With that statement, she looks over at Gabriella and Ryan who are watching her with rapt attention.

Jake knows that Eve is insane, but he still loves her and has vowed to always take care of her. He also knows something else about Eve --- she has the sight, as his old Gran used to call it. And he's learned to try and decipher between her insane ramblings and when she's trying to tell him something useful. And this tea party business sounds useful.

"Is that so?", Jake drawls lazily, but he does rise to his feet and starts to look out into the woods with interest.

Ryan and Gabriella are growing more and more nervous with everything that crazy woman is saying.

Jake walks over to the two teenagers in slow, measured strides, his eyes continuing to scan the forest. With lightening fast speed, he drops to his knees and grabs Gabriella from behind and presses his knife to her neck again.

Gabriella doesn't even have time to gasp before the whole world explodes around her. Suddenly, the forest is alive with people, men dressed in camouflaged uniforms are storming into their camp, shouting commands at Jake and Eve and Ryan is trying disparately to hang on to Gabriella's hand.

Then, one of the men grabs Eve and Jake knows it's all over. He won't do anything to put his lady love in harm. He drops the knife to the ground, raises his hands over his head and stands up slowly.

"A'right, a'right. You little ponces; I know when it's over." Sometimes it's great to be English in America. You can insult these wankers and they don't even know they're being insulted.

One of the camouflaged men rushes over to Gabriella and Ryan and starts to exam Ryan.

"Don't worry, we're with the State Police. We'll stretcher you down to the trailhead and medivac you out from there", he tells them.

Ryan looks up at the uniformed man and sees a New Mexico State Police emblem, subdued on his dark jacket, but clear nonetheless. Their emblem is a modified version of the sun symbol of the Zia Pueblo people. Every school child in New Mexico studies about it when they learn their state's history. It's on the New Mexico flag and license plates; it's everywhere. Prominently displayed on every official seal, flag and emblem in New Mexico is the ancient symbol of the sun for the Native American people called the Zia --- the sun symbol. That crazy woman was right. The sunshine really did ruin Eve's tea party.

"We're okay", insists Ryan. "It's just a sprain. But what about my sister and Troy? They're still out there with that nut."

"There's another team out rescuing them right now. Don't worry about them." Using a universal hand-cuff key, he releases their hands.

"How...how did you find us?", Gabriella asks as she rubs her left wrist trying to get the circulation back into it.

"The GPS receivers in the phones. Not very smart of them to keep those things on."

"Oh, I did a paper in science class about GPS receivers. The Global Positioning System. It was developed by the military starting in the early 1970's. There are at least 24 satellites in orbit. And it uses four satellites to solve for x, y, z and time. That's why it needs four satellites instead of three like you might normally think. The fourth one is needed for time, in fact, the satellite time is much more accurate than your own wristwatch..."

Ryan is staring at her with open love in his eyes. He looks over at the medic working on his ankle. "Isn't she wonderful?"

"Mmm", is the medic's only comment. There's someone for everyone, he supposes.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

"No, no, don't kill her, you bastard. Sharpay!", Troy screams out of his nightmare with a jerk and then, immediately regrets his sudden movement. "Ohhh, my aching head...", Troy groans as his hand automatically goes to his forehead. There, it hits soft gauze and he realizes the gash on his forehead must have been wrapped. That's when he also realizes that he's lying in a soft, warm bed --- a soft, warm hospital bed. He slowly opens his eyes and looks cautiously up at the monitor above his head. The soft beep, beep, beep of his heart is echoing in the silent room and there's an IV line in his arm, which leads to a drip bag hanging on a pole by his bed.

"Shhhh, it's okay, honey", come the soft, soothing voice that he's heard so often in his life when he's awakened from nightmares --- his mom. Except this time, the nightmare's real.

"Mom", Troy whispers. "What hap...?"

"Everything fine, honey. You're going to be okay. You had a concussion and the cut in your forehead required stitches. Since you lose consciousness, it's called a grade three concussion, so they tell us. But your CT scan looks fine, so you'll probably be released tomorrow."

"Mom...", Troy says, meeting her eyes for the first time. "What about Sharpay? Is she okay?"

"Well...", Lucy Bolton hesitates only briefing.

Then, they are interrupted by a banging noise at the door of the room.

"Are you ready for some company?", calls a female voice from the doorway.

Mrs. Evans pushes Sharpay's wheelchair further into the room and the two older women give each other meaningful looks.

"I think that answers your question", Lucy observes.

"Hi", says the uncharacteristically shy voice of Sharpay Evans.

She's wearing pink silk pajamas with big pink, fluffy house slippers and a pink silk robe which is draped on her shoulders. Definitely, not your standard hospital issue nightwear. Her right arm is in a sling and that forearm is wrapped tightly against her chest, presumably to stop her from moving it.

Sharpay's mother pushes her chair up next to the bed.

"Hey...", Troy says as the heart monitor betrays him by speeding up slightly.

"We'll just leave the two of you alone", announces Mrs. Bolton as the two older women quietly leave the room.

"You look beautiful."

And she did. Her hairstyle looks like she just stepped out of a salon. The sides and back are pinned up high into a messy upstyle and long shaped bangs are left down around her face to create a soft and shaped finish. Her makeup is also done to perfection. She's wearing navy eyeliner and shimmering bronze shadow, which gives her eyes a smoky, cat-like appearance. That's topped off with a bit of black mascara, but it's not too heavy. Her skin has a bronze glow to it and she's wearing her signature pink lip gloss.

"Thanks. My hairstylist, Mr. Greg, makes hospital calls. After our time tramping around in the forest, I wanted to look my best."

"Oh, I think you look great with nothing on at all", he says with all sincerity. "Uh,... I mean..."

"I know what you mean. And thank you."

"How...how are you?", Troy asks.

"Lucky ... or so they say. The bullet went straight through. It didn't hit any bones or anything, just muscle, which will heal, with time. It doesn't hurt so much anymore. They've got me on some great meds", she adds with a smile. "And you?"

"Oh ... I've just got a little concussion ... is all. And some stitches", he indicates to his forehead.

"Is there really such a thing as a little concussion?"

This is awkward. It shouldn't be awkward.

"What happened out there, Sharpay? I mean ... I thought you hit that guy, but you said..."

"A sniper took him out, one from the police", Sharpay informs him. "They told me they found us from the GPS receiver in my phone which was still in The Hunter's jacket." Sharpay takes a deep breath and looks down at the floor. "I'm ... not sure I could have done it, Troy. I mean ... I'd have done anything to save you, but I couldn't aim properly with only one arm and what if I'd missed him and hit ...", she trails off in tears.

"Hey... don't think like that..." Troy awkwardly tries to get out of the bed, but the rails are pulled up on both sides and he can't figure out how to get them lowered. He's jerking them up and down uselessly and getting more and more frustrated by the second.

Sharpay can't help but giggle at him.

"How do I get out of this thing?"

"There's a latch on the side. Pull it up straight and I'll move the latch."

They get the rail down and then, Troy tries to get out of the bed. Unfortunately, with all the wires attached to him, it proves to be hopeless.

"Why don't I come up there?", Sharpay suggests.

After a few minutes of maneuvering and help from Troy, Sharpay is leaning back against his chest and he has his arms wrapped carefully around her.

"We're quite a pair, aren't we, Bolton?"

"Yes, we are", Troy says seriously and he bends to put a gentle kiss on her neck.

"What's going to happen with us now?", she says reluctantly.

"Well, first I need to talk to Gabriella. It's only fair. And at least, if I do it now, she'll feel so sorry for me she won't hit me ... it least I hope so."

"God... I feel like the other woman."

"No. You shouldn't feel like that. We haven't done any wrong. Well, at least not too much wrong. We waited and I'm glad we did. You were right. It would have been for the wrong reasons and it wouldn't have been fair to Gabi.

"Look, Shar. We didn't go looking to fall in love with each other. It just happened. And even though, I'd never want to relive those 24 hours again, I'd do it again if I knew that was the only way I'd have of finding you."

"I love you, Troy Bolton."

He pulls her back to cradle her gently in his right arm and bends down to take her in a deep, searing kiss.

Then, he pulls back and says, "I love you too, Sharpay Evans and I haven't forgotten my double cheeseburger dinner."

"Put it on my tab." And she pulls him down for another kiss.

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

"I'm not sure I can do this, Ryan. I mean ... this could break his heart and he's so sweet. Can't I wait until he's out of the hospital?", Gabriella pleads.

Gabriella is pacing nervously back and forth in the hallway, outside Troy's hospital room.

"I love you, Gabriella. And I want to tell the world about how I feel. I don't want to hide anymore."

Ryan takes both of her hands in his and bring them up to his lips and kisses the backs of her hands.

"You're so sweet and I love you too", she whispers.

"Do you want me to go with you?", he offers.

"No ... I need to do this by myself, but you'll wait for me, right?"

"Of course, I won't move a muscle."

**:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:**

Gabriella takes a deep breath and quietly walks into the darkened hospital room. What she sees makes her both happy and, if she's honest, just a little sad too.

Lying sound asleep and wrapped in each others arms are Troy and Sharpay. And neither one of them has ever looked happier. They also look, she thinks, right together. They fit well together.

She quietly slips out of the room.

"That was fast."

"I don't think anyone needs to feel guilty anymore. You won't believe what I just saw..."

**The End**

Okay, folks. This is like mega short for one of my stories, but if you consider that most of the story took place in only 24 hours, it's not so bad. If you're one of those people who waits until the end of the story to review. This is it. Please let me know what you think. Thanks and until next time... Toodles.

About Mrs. Bolton's name... I noticed in the wikipedia listing for HSM3 that Mrs. Bolton is listed as Lucille Bolton. Yea! They finally gave her a name, but what a crappy name. She doesn't look anything like a Lucille. I much prefer Dana Bolton (that's the name I gave her in Why?). Anyway, so Lucy it is, I guess, but I'm not happy about it.

Remember, Jake and Eve are loosely "stolen" from Buffy the Vampire Slayer's characters of Spike and Drusilla. Dru is a real nutcase who was always spouting things that made no sense until at least 5 episodes later. Anyway, all the sun stuff about New Mexico is true. And wacky talk about the sun ruining her tea party just sounds like something Drusilla would say and it fit perfectly with the rescuers being from the State Police. I'm picturing a kind of SWAT team looking group, btw.


End file.
